Cowboys & Angels
by Ebony Salvatore
Summary: She was an angel, returning to him the son he had lost. He was a cowboy Casanova, riding off into the sunset with her heart in his hand. Fate and the luck of the Irish would bring them together, love would keep them there. JAX/OC
1. PROLOGUE

**Summary: She was an angel, returning to him the son he had lost. He was a cowboy Casanova, riding off into the sunset with her heart in his hand. Fate and the luck of the Irish would bring them together, love would keep them there.**

 **Disclaimer: Twentieth Century Fox Cinemas owns the Sons, not me. I own this story and my OCs.**

 **WARNING: I curse, so does Eli. So do the Sons.**

 **Author's Note: I know, I know, I'm nowhere near done with Midnight Rider but the little plot bunny for this gem bit me, and I'm pretty sure it had rabies. To any of my Midnight Rider readers, glad to have you on this ride as well. To new readers of mine, welcome! Hope you all enjoy!**

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 **PROLOGUE  
** **|Haven, OH|  
|2008|**

Elizabeth 'Eli' Grey was not a morning person. But, after finally accomplishing her dream of opening a tattoo parlor in her relatively small suburban town, she'd been getting up at six in the morning for the past two months to open up early. All the same, there was no way in Seven Hells that she was even going to attempt to start the day without her ritual morning cup of coffee.  
After pouring herself a steaming cup of joe from her Starbucks brew, the redheaded twenty-six-year-old went over to her warm toffee-colored couch and plopped down, tucking her legs underneath her and wrapping a fuzzy Harley Davidson blanket around herself in a little cocoon. After a moment of internal debate, Eli shrugged and decided that the parlor could open a few minutes late today because she was just too comfortable and warm to get up and do it right then.  
However, as if she'd managed to jinx it by thought alone, there was a knock at her front door. Eli groaned, resisting the urge to mutter a few choice words (though she didn't hold back in her head), and lugged her sorry self off of the couch. She sat her coffee on the table in front of the couch and wrapped the blanket tighter around her shoulders before heading towards the door. Her eyes lingered for a moment on the shotgun leaning against the wall next to the door, before she shrugged the thought aside and unlocked the door.  
Slowly, Eli opened the door and peered out. Her breath left her in a huff of indignation when she found no one on the other side. She made to close the door, making a mental note to have a talk with the good Chief of Police about the neighborhood kids messing with people again, but she froze when the sound of a quiet whimper reached her ears.  
Eli's eyes widened when they landed on a bundle of blue blankets laying innocently on her doormat and she hesitantly opened the door completely so that she could kneel down next to the little bundle. Her breath caught in her throat and her heart began to hammer away in her chest as she took the little bundle into her arms and gently pulled the blankets aside. Her blue eyes met with the clear blue of a beautiful baby, and Eli founder herself grateful that she was already sitting on the floor because she was sure she would have ended up there anyway. "Shite," she whimpered.

Alexander Grey, Chief of Haven PD, was having a good morning. Keyword? Was.  
He looked up from the paperwork he was finishing when there was a knock on his office door, and his deep blue eyes met the warm brown of his best deputy. Sarah Marshal smiled at her boss, "Your sister's here." Alex sighed, rubbing a tanned and calloused hand over his face, "What'd she do now?" Sarah looked amused, but a short time ago it wasn't uncommon for Eli Grey to end up in holding into it with someone or another. "Chief," Sarah started. "Eli isn't here in lock up, she's here on business. Asking to see you about something she found." Inwardly, Alex groaned. Outwardly, he stood from his desk, following Sarah out of his office and into the waiting area of the relatively small station. There he found his sister, in her Batman pajamas, with wild hair and terrified eyes as she cradled a bundle of blue blankets tight to her chest.  
Eli stood the moment Drew approached, babbling away at top speed. "Thank God you're here," she rambled frantically, "I didn't know what to do, I was panicking!" She would have gone on, most likely growing even more hysterical than she already was as she did so, but Alex stopped her. "Who, slow down there Eli. What's wrong?" Alex asked, stepping forward and placing his hands on her shoulders in what he clearly hoped was a calming way. Eli stared up at him for a moment, his 5'9 frame towering over her 5'2 one. Her mouth opened and her jaw moved, but no sound came out. Finally, she settled for taking a trembling hand and moving of the blankets in her arms around. Alex stared.  
"Eli," he began slowly, "Why do you have a baby?" Eli stared at him, "I was having my coffee this morning before going to open the parlor when there was a knock on my door. When I opened it, there was no one there. I figured it was just the neighbor kids, but then I heard a whimper and I looked down to see a bundle of blankets on my door mat. The thing was, they weren't just blankets." She motioned to the baby staring up at her, apparently fascinated by her blood red locks. The look on her face was one of helplessness and Alex stiffened, strong protective instincts flaring. This time, Eli was the one whimpering and not the baby, "I didn't know what to do with him, I wanted to take him to the hospital right away but I knew I had to tell you first."  
Alex sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose and nodding slowly. "You did the right thing," he told her. He glanced over to his deputy, Sarah had been dutifully been copying down his sister's statement and sighed again. "I'm taking her and the baby to the hospital," he told her before turning back to his sister, "Come on Eli, let's get the kid to Haven General." Eli nodded, trotting after her brother obediently. The two Grey siblings got into Alex's squad car and the Chief turned on his sirens. Eli gave her brother a look and he shrugged sheepishly, fighting off a childish grin, "We have to get the kid there quick." Eli shook her head, her lips twitching upwards at the corners in amusement, and gently rocked the bundle in her arms.

"Well Miss Grey," the doctor said after checking the baby over,"It would appear that little Abel is doing just fine." Abel, they had discovered, was the name stitched with obvious care onto the baby blanket the little boy had been wrapped in. "However," the doctor continued, "it would seem he's got a congenital heart defect and was born extremely premature. At the moment, it's nothing to worry about. In fact, he appears to be just fine. However, should he have any issues of any sort, even a cold, I highly suggest bringing him in just to be safe. But, I've got a feeling the little guy's a fighter." A weight she hadn't known was there disappeared off of Eli's chest at the doctor's words. She breathed a sigh of relief, gently taking Abel back into her arms when the doctor handed him over. "Thank you, Doctor Smith," Eli said and the older woman smiled, "Anytime." Eli followed the doctor back out into the waiting room where her brother sat. He stood when she approached. "Well?" Alex asked and Eli smiled, "Abel's just fine. He has a congenital heart defect and he was born premature, but the doctor says it's nothing to be worried about." Alex smiled, "Well, alright then! While you two were in there I made a call to Child Services, they'll take Abel and put him in foster care until we can locate a relative or parent." Eli was quiet as they began the walk back to the cruiser, her face troubled. After placing Abel in a hospital loaned car seat, Eli slipped into the front passenger seat and buckled up. It was then that she spoke, "Alex, what are the chances that Abel's even got any family?" Alex looked troubled as he shook his head, "They aren't good, to tell you the truth. It's pretty obvious that any family he has isn't exactly an option, seeing as he was left on your doorstep." Eli nodded slowly, "And what'll happen if they can't find his family?" Alex sighed, "He'll be classified as a ward of the state and he'll end up in the system." Eli bit her lip, glancing in the rear-view mirror at the tiny baby boy in the back. Her mind was made up then, although her heart had been decided the moment she'd known there was an option Abel had no one else. And she'd be damned if she let this sweet little boy go through what she had. "Alex," she began strongly, "I want to take him." Alex wasn't surprised, "Alright, I'll see what I can do."

Not even a day later, Eli met with a social worker. The woman was very kind and understanding, sympathizing with Eli when she told the woman that Abel had stolen her heart from the moment she happened to lay eyes on him. At the end of their meeting, the other woman had a smile on her face, "Well then, I do believe Abel will be in the best possible care with you. Congratulations." Eli smiled, beaming with happiness, and signed the papers that made it official. Eli Grey was now Abel's foster mom, and hopefully, she'd be his adopted mom.

 **|Four Months Later...|**

The entire town of Haven showed up to celebrate Eli Grey's adoption of the little boy she had been caring for. Abel Grey and his new mommy were the focus of the party, and Eli couldn't care less about the attention that she was receiving. Instead, Eli focused wholeheartedly on the beautiful face of Abel, her beautiful baby boy. Her son.

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 **Author's Note: Welcome to Cowboys & Angels! Hope you enjoyed the prologue, there's more to come on Sunday!  
P.S. Eli's name is pronounced E (like the letter)-lie.  
Questions? Comments? Review! I love 'em!  
~E.S.**


	2. CHAPTER ONE

**Summary: She was an angel, returning to him the son he had lost. He was a cowboy casanova, riding off into the sunset with her heart in his hand. Fate and the luck of the Irish would bring them together, love would keep them there.  
JAX/OC**

 **Disclaimer: Twentieth Century Fox Cinemas owns the Sons, not me. I own this story and my OCs.**

 **WARNING: I curse, so does Eli. So do the Sons.**

 **Author's Note: Chapter One is here, WARNING: THIS ONE IS A TEAR JERKER, IF YOU CRY EASILY HAVE TISSUES READY! Enjoy!**

* * *

 **CHAPTER ONE  
** **|Haven, OH|  
|2010|  
|ELI|**

Alex entered his sister's house early one morning expecting to find Eli sleeping in her room, dead to the world. Instead, he found her wide awake in the hand-carved antique rocking chair that had been in their family for decades. She was in her brand-new Walking Dead lounge pants (they were men's lounge pants to be exact, but hey, they were comfortable) and an old plain long-sleeved shirt, holding two year-old Abel in her arms as she gently rocked him back to sleep.  
"Another bad dream?" Alex asked and Eli blinked, having not noticed him standing in the doorway, "Yeah, the same one. How'd you get in?" Silently, Alex held up the house key she had given him when she'd first bought the house some time ago. Eli nodded, grinning sheepishly, "Right. I knew that." Alex rolled his eyes playfully.  
Eli's eyes drifted from her brother to her son, and with gentle fingers she swept a strand of blond hair away from the little boy's face. Then, she looked back up. She stared at Alex for a moment and the Chief barely stopped himself from fidgeting under her uncanny gaze. Eli's eyes narrowed, the blue in them bright even in the dimness of the room, "What _are_ you doing here?" This time, Alex couldn't stop himself from shifting uneasily, and his heart throbbed painfully from its place within his chest.  
"Eli..." he trailed off, his eyes trained on the white carpet of Abel's nursery. Eli's head snapped upright once more, her grip tightening ever so slightly on Abel's slumbering form. Alex flounder for a moment, words escaping him, before he sighed. "Late last night," he began slowly, "A group of people came down to the station. A woman and a couple of guys, the guys were wearing these leather vests." Eli's uneasy expression shifted, and now she was gazing at her brother in confusion, "The Sons of Anarchy?"  
The motorcycle club was well-known in Haven, hell it was **home** to a charter. The Sons of Anarchy N. Ohio Charter, to be exact. And Eli herself was most certainly no stranger to the bikers. After all, she was the only one they came to for tattoos. Well, that other reasons.  
Alex nodded, "Yeah, but these guys? They were from the Redwood Original Charter." Eli's eyes widened. SAMCRO, she realized. SAMCRO, the mother charter of the Sons. "Eli," Alex continued with a sigh, realizing that his sister really had no idea what was to come, "They came here because they heard about Abel." Eli frowned, her grip tightening on the blond child once more, what did Abel have to do with SAMCRO? She voiced her confusion, "Abel? What would they want with Abel?" Alex roughly ran a calloused hand through his hair, a sure sign of frustration, "The VP, some guy named Jax, he had a son named Abel. But, when the kid was only eight months old, someone kidnapped him. That was two years ago, Eli."  
Eli's blood felt like ice in her veins. "No," she whispered, fear seizing her as she connected the dots. Alex went on, rambling in that Grey way of theirs, "They said that they'd looked for him in California, hell they'd even went all the way to Ireland because that was where the kid's kidnapper was from. They couldn't find him. The dad, that Jax guy, he was devastated." Eli spoke louder, "No." Alex stopped talking mid-sentence. "Abel can't be this man's son, we looked! He had no family," Eli reasoned as she held the little boy tighter. "Eli," Alex said softly, stepping further into the room, "Eli, they have proof." Eli ignored him, standing from the rocking chair as she craddled Abel more securely in her arms. She placed the little boy in his crib, leaning heavily on the siding as she stood there for a moment, watching the gentle rise and fall of Abel's little chest. "Eli. The guy, Jax his family has a history of congenital heart defects. The condition's hereditary Eli, you know that. And this guy's son, his Abel, was born premature. His mother was a junkie and she overdosed before he was born. It's all there Eli, they even brought his birth certificate," Alex said softly, moving to stand behind his sister. He placed a hand on her trembling shoulder, and she never once lifted her gaze from Abel's sleeping face. "He's my son," she whispered mournfully, blue eyes brimming with tears that she wouldn't let fall, "He's my son." Alex didn't say anything, he couldn't say anything. Instead, he pulled her close as continued to gaze at the most important thing in her life. Her son. And surely, if a bystander was to listen in at that exact moment, they would hear two hearts breaking as another continued to beat.

 **|JAX|  
** Two years. Two years of absolute fucking hell. It had been two years since that Irish son of a bitch Cameron had taken Abel, and yet the invisible wound that had been ripped into Jackson Teller's heart the day he had returned home to find Half-Sack dead and Abel missing was still as fresh as it had been that first day. Sometimes, Jax thought he knew what his father had felt when Thomas had died. Other times, he berated himself for thinking that. Abel wasn't dead, he **knew** that.  
And, the final straw that broken the camel's back? Tara had left. Again. She had stuck around that first year, but eventually enough was enough and she'd went back to Chicago, further breaking Jax's already broken heart. Any will he'd had left to go on, to keep looking, had left. Just like her. And so, as he had the first time Tara Knowles had abandoned him, Jax lost himself in a hailstorm of bullets, blood, booze, and pussy.  
He'd came back to himself once, when he'd killed Cameron violently. Even Happy had cringed at the Prince's methods. After that, deals with the Irish had stopped. Not even Clay, in his often single-minded perspective, had thought about continuing buisness with the Rebellion. Not after what that son of a bitch had done. After all, Abel was still Clay's grandson. In fact, they hadn't even been in touch with the Belfast charter, not since the search for Abel had gone cold. But, other than giving Jax the vengenace he had so despretally craved, killed Cameron hadn't done a damn thing. Abel was still missing, they still had no idea where he was, because even though Cameron was a yellow-bellied coward and a traitor, he still knew how to hold his tongue even to the end. So, ultimatley, Jax lost himself. All he knew, for two long yeas, was guilt, anger, grief, alcohol, and sex. Until, that is, a member of SOANO called Gemma.

The Queen of SAMCRO slammed open the door to her son's room at the clubhouse, glaring something fierce when her eyes landed on the blond hussy Ima Tite. "Out bitch," Gemma snarled, her glare following the little bitch as Ima took her sweet time gathering her skanky ass clothing and leaving the room. Gemma growled. She stormed forward then, her nose wrinkling at the state of Jax's room and the smell that lingered there. "Jackson, get the hell up," she snapped. Jax grunted, tossing an arm over his eyes and otherwise ignoring his mother. Gemma shook, she was so angry. She resisted the urge to beat her own flesh and blood black and blue because of his self-centered antics, and stomped over to his closest. She found a clean pair of jeans and a black SAMCRO hoodie that she tossed on Jax, his cut following soon after. As she made to leave, she paused, "Joey from Ohio called, one of his guys thinks he's found Abel." Then, she stalked out of the room and slammed the door behind her.  
Jax showered and changed in record time, his heart hammering away in his chest, and he made a beeline for the Church. He sat down at the Table right as Tig walked in with Bobby and the door shut. "Listen up," Clay said as he smacked the gavel and called the meeting to order. "SOANO called this morning. One of their guys was getting a tattoo done at their regular place when he noticed a picture the woman who owns the place had up. It was a blond haired, blue eyed little boy. He asked and the woman said that the boy's name is Abel. She said he's her two year-old son. Now, Joey had one of his guys do some digging at their General Hospital and found out that the same woman who owns this tattoo shop found an eight month old baby boy outside her door two years ago and she took him in. She was his foster mom for four months before she was able to adopt him. And get this, the kid was born premature with a congentical heart defect. I don't think I have to ask whether or not we're going to get him, do I?" It was a unanimous vote. SAMCRO was going to Haven, OH to bring Abel Teller back where he belonged.  
Before heading out with the rest of the guys and his mom, Jax stopped by his house. He hadn't been there in roughly a year, not since Tara had left anyways, and that first year he hadn't been there much either. Once inside he found a fine layer of dust covering everything, and he found that Tara had taken everything that she'd once kept there. Abel's nursery was untouched, still and frozen. There was a fine layer of dust over everything there too, and Jax had to swallow a lump in his throat that had formed rapidly when his eyes landed on on the baby blue SAMCRO beanie Abel had worn first when he was born, it was the same hat that bastard Cameron had left on the dock to taunt Jax and remind him of all he had lost. Jax fought back tears, after two years was he finally going to get his son back? An hour later, Jax and the others were rocketing down the highway towards the border. Come Hell or high water, Abel was Jax's son. And he hadn't spent all of that time searching, just to stop now.

The ride from Charming to Haven, OH went smooth. None of them stopped. None of them wanted to. And, before any of them (especially Jax) knew it, they were speeding past the 'Welcome to Haven!' sign. And, after making a pit stop at SAMNO's clubhouse on the outskirts of the small suburban town, Jax went on to the police station with his mother, Clay, and Opie.  
They walked into the little station, not unlike Charming's own, and waited not-so-patiently after informing the deputy at the main desk that they were there to see the Cheif of Police. The man in question approached them quickly, "Can I help you?" Jax stepped forward quickly, "A member of SOANO called my mother, told her that two years ago a young woman found an eight month-old baby named Abel. My son, Abel Teller, he went missing two years ago when he was eight months." The Chief stared at him for a moment, seemingly stunned into silence. Finally, he shook his head as if to clear his mind and audibly cleared his throat, "Do you have anything that can back up your claims?" Jax nodded, and Gemma stepped forward to hand the Chief a copy of a police-issued missing poster for Abel as well as his birth certificate. The Chief took them quickly and scanned them over, his body visibly sagging suddenly. He sighed, raking a hand through his salt and pepper hair. He looked to his deputy and the young woman frowned, "Should I call Eli?" The Chief shook his head in the negative, "No. I'll swing by and tell her myself." Then, the man turned back to Jax and company. "I'd like to arrange a DNA test up at the hospital, if you don't mind. Abel means a lot to the people of Haven." Jax agreed quickly, he was willing to do whatever it took to get his baby boy back. Arrangements were made for a DNA test that morning (it was actually quite late) and then Jax left with the other trailing behind him. They headed back to SAMNO's clubhouse, and Jax hardly dared allow himself to hope.

 **|ELI|**  
When she woke up that morning, Eli wanted the night before to be nothing but a bad dream. But, logically, she knew that it was anything but. And then, as if to further cemented this knowledge in her head, Alex called around noon to inform her that the DNA test results had come back positive. Abel Grey was the son of Jax Teller, a biker VP.  
Eli swallowed hard, a thick lump lodging itself in her throat. "Alex..." she leaned heavily against the wall in the kitchen, her grip on the cordless house phone bruising. "Give me more time," she pleaded, traitorous tears filling her eyes once more. "Just a little more time, to- to say goodbye," If her breath hitched on the word 'goodbye' who was to blame her? Alex was torn between duty and family, and ultimatley the latter won out. "Alright," he agreed. He cleared his throat and sighed heavily, "I'll find a way to buy you some time. Don't do anything stupid now." Eli didn't dignify his words with a reply, instead she ended the call and slammed the phone down hard on the countertop. To think that her own brother had thought she would actually run off with Abel. Yes, she was impulsive but even the best of us are, and she was by no means heartless. Abel's father deserved to have his son back.  
She got dressed quickly, throwing on an old pair of ripped Silver jeans and a long-sleeved black SOANO t-shirt, paired with a plain pair of black leather boots. Then, she dressed Abel in a black Harley Davidson shirt with white overalls and sneakers before placing the two year-old in his stroller and heading for the park a block from her house. The trip was passed in silence, Eli's inner turmoil preventing her from keeping up her usual running commentary on all the things to be found in the outdoors. Instead, she tried to think of anything **but** the fact that this would be the last time she would ever take Abel on a stroll out to the park.  
Once inside the large gated area Eli made for a secluded hill overlooking the rest of the park. She spread the picnic blanket she'd brought with them out on the ground underneath a towering oak tree, turning and unbuckling Abel's small form and pulling him gently from the stroller. She sat then, placing the baby in her lap. The little boy was perfectly content to sit there, gurgling happily and flipped the pages of a book she'd bought him called 'The Wheels Go'. Eli resisted the urge to snort bitterly when she realized that she had surrounded Abel with her love for motorcycles, leather, and the dark colors when his biological father was, in fact, the VP to the largest MC Eli had ever heard of. And the original charter, to boot.  
And then, the alarn she'd sent on her iPhone went off. Eli's jaw clenched and she squeezed her eyes shut until the tears that had brimmed there went back to whence they came. She stood, giving her precious baby boy a fake smile as she placed him back in his stroller. She folded and packed the blanket away once more, before going around to kneel on her knees in front of Abel. The little boy was quiet, as if he knew that something was wrong, and he watched her with intelligent and stormy blue eyes. "My good boy," Eli whispered, reaching out with trembling fingers to gently brush a golden curl behind Abel's ear. Abel beamed at her, the only mother he had ever known. "Goo' boy," he parroted sweetly and Eli laughed wetly. She straightened, and with a heavy heart she started to push the stroller back home. Each step causing a fissure to form through an already broken heart.

Alex wasn't there when Eli and Abel arrived back at the house, but Eli knew she didn't have much time left. So, she took Abel inside and put him down for his nap, placing a gentle kiss on the sleepy little boy's forehead. Then, she took his diaper bag and retreated into the kitchen. Slowly, haltingly, she packed away Abel's things. The bottles, baby food, clothes that she had lovingly purchased, teething rings and toys, all of it was sealed away within that large bag. Last, she packed a stuffed bear Abel had named E, a bear she had bought the little boy the day the adoption papers had went through. He couldn't sleep at night without it. After a moment of hesitation, Eli stood from her chair and grabbed an empty notebook and a pen. She sat down and, in a halting manner, she wrote. Then, when she was finished, she sealed away two letters in individual envelopes, scrawling out a name on each one. These letters she tucked carefully into the folds of a homemade baby book that documented Abel's years with Eli. Two wonderful years...  
A knock on the door startled her and Eli's head snapped upright. Slowly, she stood and approached the door. She unlocked it and peered out, opening it fully when her eyes met with her brother's. He was alone, but within a few moment Eli heard the tell tale sound of motercylces. Rolling thunder, her mother had called it.  
Several men appeared on bikes, and a single woman arrived in a car. They all joined Alex on Eli's front porch and the redheaded woman smiled painfully. "Come in," she invited them. "Abel's sleeping," she informed Alex and he nodded knowingly."I-" she faltered, breath hitching, as she clung to the wall for support. Alex stepped forward but Eli shrugged him off roughly, glaring at him with pained eyes. She straightened, shot the group behind her yet another false smile, and soldiered on, "I'll show you to his nursery." She lead the group into her home, and valiently ignored the curious looks that the pictures on her walls were getting.  
They arrived at the door to Abel's room, a plaque her grandfather had painstakingly crafted declaring the room as Abel's. She paused, hand on the doorknob and shut her eyes tightly. Then, she turned the knob and pushed the door open. The nursery seemed hollow almost, a sense of ominous forboding hanging heavy in the air. It was almost as if the room was sentient and could tell that it was about to loose its loving occupant, or maybe that was just Eli's heart.  
Eli stepped back and watched as an incredibly handsome blond haired and stormy-eyed man with facial hair stepped forward when she motioned to the crib, and Eli realized with a jolt that he had the same blue eyes as Abel. Her brother joined her then and they watched as shameless tears formed in the eyes of this man, this Jax Teller. The older woman stepped forward and hugged Mr. Teller, her lips trembling, and Eli figured this must have been Abel's grandmother, Mr. Teller's mother.  
There came a soft coo suddenly and Eli's heart jolted painfully within her chest. Abel was awake. It was silent for a moment before the little boy gurgled, "Da!"  
Eli wanted to laugh at the looks that crossed the faces of these people, people that truly had no idea just how smart Abel was. "He's very smart," she managed to say in a chocked whisper.  
The man, Jax, slowly reached inside the crib and lifted Abel easily. He craddled the baby to his chest and the sight of him holding the two year-old was one to behold, Eli's eyes were wide as she took in just how many features Abel shared with this man, this Jax Teller, his father. Abel looked around the room curiously, taking in all of the new faces with a calm sort of surprise, then his eyes landed on Alex. "Unca Al!" Abel cheered and Alex laughed sadly, "Hey there, little buddy." Alexander was not fond of nicknames, especially nicknames that he didn't come up with, and Abel was the only one that could get away with calling him 'Al' and getting away with it.  
Then, Abel's eyes landed on Eli and they lit up, "Mama!" Eli's eyes brimmed with tears once more and she couldn't, no matter how hard she tried, bring herself to smile back. "Mama, up!" Abel demanded with a frown, leaning out of his father's arms towards his mother as he sensed the distress of the only mother he had ever known. Eli trembled, stepping forward and looking pleading up into the eyes of Abel's father. Slowly, he handed the little boy over.  
Eli ignored the others in the room as she held Abel close, her entire body trembling but her grip on the little boy strong. She pressed a kiss to his cheek, and Abel giggled. He copied her, planting a sloppy kiss on her cheek and Eli laughed wetly. She pressed one to his forehead and he pressed one to her other cheek. She closed her eyes, resting her head on his gently. She fought the tears, refusing to cry, with all the strength that she had. "Look what Mama has," she choked out after a moment. Abel lifted his head from her shoulder, beaming widely when he saw the stuffed bear in her hand. Alex had retreived it from the diaper bag and given it to Eli when he had joined her off to the side. "E!" Eli nodded, smiling painfully when Abel took the bear from her. "That's right. And, why did Mama give you E?" Eli asked and Abel smiled brightly, "Mama love Abel." Eli nodded again, "Mama loves Abel very much. So, so much. Mama will always love her little boy." Abel frowned, "I two!" He shoved two pudgy little finger into Eli's face and she laughed, "Yes, you are. You're a big boy, and I love my big boy." Her breath grew ragged. She pressed another kiss to Abel's forehead, "You have to go with Da now, Abel." Abel frowned, "Mama come?" Eli shook her head, the tears brimming once again. "Mama can't come," she told him and Abel frowned. "Mama come," he insisted. Eli shook her head again, and handed him over to his father. Abel looked between his father, his mother, and his bear before seeming to come to a decision, "Mama, take E." He held out the bear and Eli stepped forward to take the offered toy with a shaky smile and a trembling hand. "I love you," shw whispered, closing her eyes tightly as she pressed a kiss to Abel's forhead one last time. Then, Jax Teller gave Abel to a large man that greatly resembled a lumberjack in Eli's opinion. It was then, just as the man made to leave with Abel and the others, that the little boy seemed to finally understand that Eli really wasn't going with him.  
"Mama!" Abel cried, fat alligatior tears rolling down his chubby cherub cheeks, "Mama, come! Mama, come with! Mama come with Abel!" Abel's cried tore raggedly at Eli and she turned away as a strangled sob escaped her trembling lips. "Mama!" Abel's last cry cut to the bone and it lingered in the silence that followed the closing of the door. Eli didn't turn as she adressed the only two people left in the room, besides her brother, "There's a diaper bag on the table, it's got his things in it." She staggered over to the crib, leaning heavily against it as she had that first night. But, this time, when the tears came, for the first time since Alex had told her the truth, Eli allowed herself to cry. Her shoulders shook silently, and a trickle of blood dripped down her chin from her lip as she bit at it harshly. She unclenched a fist, staring at the stuffed animal that Abel had parted with just for her. Then, her eyes drifted to the wooden block letters spelling out his name on the wall above the crib, and the pillar of strength that had always existed within Elizabeth Grey crumbled.  
Alex rushed forward, catching his little sister as her legs gave out underneath her. She curled in on herself from within his arms, her cries tearing into him. "My baby," she sobbed with all the pain in the world. "My baby..." Neither Grey noticed when Jax Teller and his mother slipped out of the nursery. A wordless cry recognizable by animal and human alike ringing in the ears.

The cry of a mother that had lost a son.

 **|JAX|**  
That morning, Jax was a ball of nervous energy. He couldn't sit still and rocketed out of his chair in SAONO's clubhouse the moment the Chief had shown up. The ride was spent in awkward silence until they got to the hospital, neither men knowing what to say.  
The DNA test was done quickly, they took a bit of Jax's blood and ran the code found within that blood to the code found in Abel's. It was a match, and Jax was glad he was sitting when they told him because his knees went weak. Abel, his Abel, was safe. He and the Chief made their way back to the cruiser and it was silent for a few minutes.  
Abel's an amazing little boy," the Chief finally said. He smiled ruefully, "He's got most of the town wrapped around his little finger, my family especially." Jax raised an eyebrow. The Chief shrugged rather sheepishly, "Eli, Elizabeth, his adopted mother, is my younger sister. I've been calling the kid my nephew for two years now. My parents were ecstatic when the adoption went through, they love the little guy. And Eli... I've never seen her happier." He smiled softly, his eyes distant, before he shook himself out of whatever memory he was reliving. He cleared his parents, "My parents, they uh wire money to my sister and I ever holiday so that we can take Abel to the family functions in Illinios. Abel, he steels hearts. He stole Eli's heart the moment she looked at him. She was going to take him in no matter what, she knows what can happen to kids that get put in the System." Jax nodded, unsure what to say. But, he had a sneaking suspicion that Miss Elizabeth Grey knew more about what kids in the System could go through then what the Chief was telling.

When he got back to SOANO's clubhouse, Jax couldn't help but think back on the statement the Chief had whispered back at the hospital after the DNA test results had come back in, a statement Jax was fairly certain he wasn't supposed to hear. "This''s break her heart," the Chief had muttered. Jax felt bad just thinking about causing a woman like this Miss Elizabeth Grey, a woman that had taken in a baby out of the goodness of her heart, any sort of pain.

Later that afternoon, Jax and the guys (Clay, Opie, Juice, and Chibs) along with mother followed the Chief to Miss Elizabeth 'Eli' Grey's house. Jax was more nervous now then he'd been in a long time as he joined the Chief on the front porch. A beautiful young woman opened the door wider, and her appearance knocked Jax for a loop.  
Ripped jeans, leather boots, and an SOANO shirt obviously got his mother's attention. It was the long red hair, nice tits, gorgeous ass, and beautiful face that got Jax. But her eyes, a clear electric blue, were so incredibly sad that they sent a jolt of pain through Jax's very being.  
"Come in," she invited them with a soft voice that held a hint of steel. Her eyes flickered over to the Chief, "Abel's sleeping." The Chief nodded knowingly. "I-" she faltered, holding onto the wall with a white-knuckled grip and Jax shared a worried look with Opie. Just as Jax was going to step forward, the Chief did. But, the beautiful woman glared at the man angrily as she shrugged him away. Jax shared another look with Opie. She turned away from them for a moment, before turning back to them with one hell of a poker face. "I'll show you to his nursery," she informed them before leading them into her home. Jax pretended not to notice Gemma's knowing smirk.

As they walked, Jax noticed the pictures on the walls. Abel was in almost every single one and Jax's heart clenched within his chest. There were pictures of Abel as a tiny bab with this utter beauty known as his adopted mother holding him, pictures of Abel with an older couple Jax assumed were the parents the Chief had been talking about, there were pictures of the Chief and the Beauty (as Jax decided to call her) when they were younger too, though those were in short supply. Abel seemed to be in the most pictures, and there always seemed to be two permanent fixtures in these pictures: the Beauty and the utter adoration she always had in her eyes when she looked at him.  
Then, their little procession came to a halt in front of a door marked with a handmade plaque that claimed the room as Abel's. The Beauty opened it quietly, and they all filed in. She paused, looking longingly towards the crib, before stepping off to the side. Jax was frozen. Then, Opie gently pushed him forward. Slowly, he moved towards the crib painted white and looked first at the blocks spelling Abel's name. They were so much like the ones in Abel's nursery at home that Jax wanted to laugh.  
Finally, he looked down and saw his son for the first time in two years. Abel was sleeping peacefully, his golden curls longer than Jax last remembered them to be, his eyes fluttering in a dream. Jax felt tears brim in his eyes because this was his son, his baby boy, finally before him after two long and horrible years. His mother walked over, her lips trembling as they often did when she was upset or emotional, and she hugged him tightly.  
There was a soft coo then and Jax's head snapped up, his eyes connecting with mirroring stormy blues. It was silent for a moment and then Jax's son gurgled, "Da!" Jax stared in shock, pride welling up within his chest. His two-year-old son knew who he was! There were no words for how he felt at that moment.  
A whisper, more of a whimper really, caught his attention and he listened without turning as the beauty whispered in a choked voice, "He's very smart."  
Slowly, hesitantly, Jax lifted Abel from the crib and into his arms. And the joy he felt at being able to hold his son again, was in no way describable. As Jax help him, Abel looked around at all the new faces curiously. His eyes landed on the Chief, "Unca Al!" The Chief laughed sadly, "Hey there, little buddy."  
Jax watched then, as Abel's eyes landed on Beauty and they lit up. The utter love the little boy cleared felt for this woman twisted at Jax. That twisted feeling grew stronger as he watched the redheaded woman's eyes fill with tears that she refused to let fall. The pain on her face stole the breath from Jax's lungs. And, apparently, Abel noticed her distress as well.  
"Mama, up!" The little boy demanded with a frown, behind Jax Opie coughed to hide a laugh at the child's demanding voice. Jax ignored him. The Beauty trembled and stepped forward, looking up at Jax with these broken blue eyes. Internally, Jax growled. The urge to pull her close, comfort her, and protect her from the world was strong within him. His heart broke for her, however, and he slowly handed Abel off to her.

Jax watched as she cradled the child close, the two of them shares kisses, before she held up a stuffed bear that had seen better days. Abel seemed overjoyed at the bear's presence,"E!" Jax quirked an eyebrow, the teddy's name was 'E'? She smiled wetly, and it was tragically beautiful, "That's right. And, why did Mama give you E?" Abel grinned, "Mama love Abel." Jax's heart clenched from within his chest. "Mama loves Abel very much. So, so much. Mama will always love her little boy," she said softly. Abel frowned, "I two!" The little boy shoved two pudgy fingers into her face and Jax snorted softly. He watched, transfixed, as the Beauty smiled and for a moment it lit up her face. Like sunshine on a diamond necklance, the lit makes it all the more beautiful.  
"Yes," she told Abel. "You are. You're a big boy, and I love my big boy." Jax noted the changed in her breathing as it grew ragged. She kissed Abel on the forehead, "You have to go with Da now, Abel." Abel frowned, "Mama come?" Jax frowned with his son as she shook her head, tears brimming in those beautiful blue orbs. "Mama can't come," she told the child. "Mama come," Abel insisted. The Beauty shook her head again, and she slowly handed Jax his son. Jax watched as Abel looked between himself, the only woman the child had known as a mother, and the stuffed teddy the little boy held in one fist. A lit in his stormy blue eyes told Jax that his son had decided something. The little one spoke then, "Mama, take E."  
The redheaded beauty stepped forward and took the bear with a trembling hand. She pressed a kiss to the child's forehead, her eyes shut tightly, "I love you." She pulled away, and Jax handed Abel to Opie. His friend moved to leave, and Abel seemed to realize that his adopted mother really was going with them.  
"Mama!" Abel cried, "Mama come! Mama, come with! Mama come with Abel!" Jax cringed, his son's shouts digging painfully into his heart. The pain on this woman's face dug the barbs in even deeper. "Mama!" Abel's last cry rung out and lingered in the air even after Opie and the others had left. Jax found himself alone in the nursery with Miss Elizabeth Grey, the Chief, and his mother.  
The Beauty had turned away in pain, and she still didn't turn to face them as she adressed them in a broken whisper, "There's a diaper bag on the table, it's got his things in it." Jax watched, his eyes sad and concern radiating from him, as she staggered over to the crib and leaned heavily against it. Her face was hidden from him as her shoulds shook, and for the first time throughout the whole ordeal Jax knew her to be crying. Her hand uncurled from the bear and she held it close to her chest, sobs coming harder now, as her legs gave way beneath her.  
She folded in on herself in her brother's arms as the Chief rushed forward, catching her, and cradled her to his chest. The two sibling kneeled there on the floor, and Jax hearted jolted painfully in his chest. "My baby," she sobbed and Jax swallowed hard. "My baby..." Gemma grabbed his arm then and directed him from the room, the two of them leaving silently. Gemma was the one to grab the diaper bag as they fled the house through the kitchen. And Jax knew, however, that the last cry he heard from her, one of wordless anguish that didn't need words to be understood, would haunt him until the end of his days.

The cry of a mother that had lost a son.

* * *

 **Author's Note: I cried when I wrote this chapter, I will admit. Uh, I don't have much to say because I'm really kind of emotionally worn after writing this. Chapter Two should be up Tuesday. See you guys then.  
NOTE: My profile will be updated with this story's update schedule. Check it out. Or PM me. Whatever's easiest.  
Questions? Comments? Review! I love 'em!  
~E.S**


	3. CHAPTER TWO

**Summary: She was an angel, returning to him the son he had lost. He was a cowboy Casanova, riding off into the sunset with her heart in his hand. Fate and the luck of the Irish would bring them together, love would keep them there.**

 **Disclaimer: Twentieth Century Fox Cinemas owns the Sons, not me. I own this story and my OCs.**

 **WARNING: I curse, so does Eli. So do the Sons.**

 **Author's Note: I'm so sorry about not updating yesterday guys, my internet, as well as my computer, are on the fritz. Thankfully, I was able to get this chapter saved and posted. So, without further ado, here's Chapter Two. Enjoy!**

* * *

 **CHAPTER TWO  
** **|Haven, OH|  
|ELI|**

Eli woke with a gasp. Her body covered in a thin sheen of sweat, the young woman stumbled out of bed and raced into the adjoining bathroom. The door slammed hard against the wall, but Eli was too busy kneeling before the porcelain throne to pay any attention. When she was finished getting sick, Eli stood on shaking legs. She stumbled over to the sink, turning on the tap as she grabbed her toothpaste and toothbrush. She scrubbed hard, desperately trying to get the taste of bile out of her mouth. Finally, she spat the white foam into the sink and turned the tap back on. She watched it wash away before cleaning out her toothbrush and putting her things away. She stood there for a moment then, leaning heavily on the sink as she clutched at the shining basin. She looked up, observing herself in the mirror and taking in her pale complexion and the dark half-moons under her eyes. Then, her eyes widened as she _remembered._  
The bathroom door slammed open once again and Eli rushed out, flinging open her bedroom door as she raced to the nursery just down the hall. That door was opened slightly more gently, but it still swung open with some force. Eli ran through the doorway and froze as she stopped in front of the crib. Her breath was ragged, rattling in her chest sickly, as she stared at the empty crib. "Abel..." the whisper was rough, her throat dry and raw from the tears she had spread only a few hours earlier.  
Eli didn't know how it happened, but one minute she was standing and the next she was on the floor. She leaned back against the crib, her legs sprawled out beside her at an odd angle as she stared into the distance blankly. Abel, her son, her Abel, was gone.  
And Eli, who hadn't given up in a very long time, gave in to what she felt in that moment. And darkness became all she knew.

 **|ALEX|  
** He walked into Eli's house hesitantly. He half-expected to hear the sound of cartoons from the TV and Abel's delighted giggles as Eli laughed. It was like a slap in the face to walk into the house and find nothing but silence. Silence and stillness. The place was downright eerie and fear filled Alex's heart as he rushed down the hallway to Eli's room. Her bedroom door was half open, and the bedsheets were strewn around the floor. Alex searched her bathroom, practically ripping back the shower curtain in his haste to find his younger sister, only to encounter nothing. Then, with a shuddering breath, he closed his eyes. He knew where she was.  
Alex walked from the bedroom to the nursery, slowly pushing open the door that had swung mostly shut on its own accord. He found his sister staring blankly at a wall, a lit cigarette in her hands. As he watched, she lifted it to her lips and took a drag before putting her hand back down.  
"I thought you quit," he said softly. Eli didn't startle, but Alex knew she couldn't have seen nor heard him come in. Hell, she didn't even turn her eyes away from that blasted wall to look at him. Almost as if to spite him and his words, Eli took another lungful of cigarette smoke and blew it out through her nose.  
Silently, Alex sat down next to Eli and took the cigarette she offered him. He pulled out his own lighter and lit it, taking a deep drag before blowing out the smoke slowly. "I miss him too, you know," he said. Eli didn't respond. He turned his head to the side, watching as a single tear trickled down her face. _Me too_ , her blank gaze whispered mournfully. Alex swallowed hard.

 **|ELI|**  
She continued to sit there, even after Alex had left. She didn't respond when he told her goodbye, and she didn't laugh bitterly when he told her that everything would be alright. Nothing was right anymore. She moved once from her spot on the nursery floor, and that was to go get Jack, Johnny Red, Johnny Black, and Jose. She returned to her spot then, dressed in a pair of sweatpants and a plain black tank top. She spent the rest of the day and well into the night smoking and drinking. Another day passed, and she continued to stare at the wall even as she heard the front door open. Sure enough, she noticed her brother appear in the doorway to the nursery out of the corner of her eye. "Eli," he called out to her. She didn't move. "Eli," he called a little bit louder this time. She didn't blink. "Elizabeth," he was losing his temper. She could tell he was. But, she continued to stare at the fascinating point on the wall. "Goddamnit, Eli! Look at me when I'm talking to you!"  
Internally, she snarled right back at her brother and flipped him the bird. No one talked to her like that and got away with it, not anymore.  
Outwardly, she stared blankly ahead and took a gulp from her shot glass, relishing the burn of the whiskey as it went down.  
Just as she'd expected him to, Alex stared at her for a moment as he raked a hand through his salt-and-pepper hair before he stormed off. The slamming of the front door echoed through the empty house.  
Eli took another drink.

 **|Charming, CA|  
|JAX|**  
Jax wasn't sure what he expected. He certainly hadn't thought things were going to be easy, Abel had known the woman for two years and there was no way he was going to take being separated from her well. But, he most certainly hadn't expected things to be as hard as they were.  
That first day, after arriving back in Charming, Jax had met his mother at her car right after their small procession had arrived back at TM. "How is he?" Jax asked, and the look on Gemma's face was one of drawn worry, "He fell asleep after we crossed Ohio borders. Didn't stop crying for 'Mama' until then, though." There was something more to it, though, and Jax could tell. He stared at her for a moment, his eyes narrowed just slightly. Gemma looked back at him, the worry far from hidden in her eyes. Jax sighed, "What is it, Ma?" Gemma smiled, and it was the worst fake smile Jax had ever seen from his mother and they both knew it. "It's nothing, baby," she told him, waving her hand in the air as if to wave off the thought. Jax watched her for another moment, "Alright. I'm going to take Abel home then, and take the rest of the day off to get some rest." Gemma nodded, smiling a bit more convincingly, "Sure thing, honey." Jax leaned inside the car, taking the diaper bag and swinging it over his shoulder as he unlatched Abel's car seat and gently pulled it out of the car, sleeping baby still inside it. He headed for his truck after casting his mother another look, strapping Abel's car seat into the white 2005 Chevrolet Silverado, climbing into the truck and starting it after getting his son settled in.

Jax made it to the house with no problems. He slung the diaper bag over his shoulder after parking in the driveway, leaning in to unbuckle Abel's car seat. He carried the slumbering baby and car seat in easily, the diaper bag still slung over his shoulder, and gently kicked the front door shut behind him with his foot. He headed to the nursery, finding that Abel's old nanny Neeta had been by and had cleaned the entire house including Abel's room, and finally dropped the bag in the rocking chair in the corner. He sat Abel's car seat down on the floor and unbuckled the slumbering two-year-old, gently cradling his son in his arms. He gazed down at his son's peaceful face and swallowed hard. Gently, so as not to harm or wake the sleeping child, he hugged Abel close and pressed a kiss to the boy's head. Finally, finally, after two years of utter hell, Jax had his son back in his arms. Slowly, after a moment of simply being, Jax placed Abel in his crib. Then, he turned to the rocking chair. He sat, placing the bag in his lap as he slowly unzipped it and began to go through its contents. Bottles, baby food, teething rings, stuffed animals in various sizes and shapes and types, all were placed gently on the floor until he could put them away. And then, Jax found the book.  
It was a baby book, with soft velvet binding and a hard cover with images of blue elephants shooting water in the shape of a heart from their trunks repeating over and over again. And, wrote in curling script, was 'ABEL'. Jax realized with a jolt that the handwriting on this book belonged to Elizabeth Grey, a woman that had known Abel virtually longer than he had. Jax swallowed hard.  
Slowly, he opened the book.

 **|GEMMA|**  
Wincing at the noise made as she pried open a locked storage room with a trusty crowbar, Gemma tossed the 'bar back in her Cadillac as she turned back to the old storage locker. Slowly, for the first time in years, Gemma walked in.  
A few minutes later, she carried the last of four boxes out of the storage room and placed the box with the others in the Cadillac's trunk. She shut the trunk, turned back to the storage locker and wrenched the door shut once again, before slipping into the driver's seat and driving back home.

It was late when Gemma finally worked up the courage to look in those boxes. She brought them into the house by herself, Clay attending Abel's homecoming party, and sat at the kitchen table. She lit a joint and took a drag, before opening one of the boxes. She pulled out paper after paper, and it was only when the box was empty and the papers formed several stacks that Gemma actually started going through them. She sorted through the stack of old junk, old assignments Jax had done when he was younger and came out empty handed. She threw away the junk papers and replaced the important ones before turning to the next box.  
About an hour and a half later, she had gone through all but one box. Slowly, Gemma opened it. Her eyes brimmed with tears as she gazed down at the many albums that filled the box. The first one she picked up was marked, 'Teller'. Slowly, Gemma flipped through the album, laughing at some pictures and close to tears at others. The next album was called, 'Jackson'. It was thicker than the other but nearly as old. This was Jax's baby book. She flipped through it, snorting at the pictures of herself while pregnant with her eldest son and laughing at others. Then, she found the album she had been looking for, to begin with.  
'Thomas,' it read. Slowly, Gemma picked up the book and opened it.

 **|JAX|  
** He sat in the same rocking chair, staring pensively at the two letters he held (one in each hand), letters that had been placed carefully in the final plastic slot of Abel's baby book. One letter was addressed to, 'Abel'; the other, 'Jax'. His heart hammered away in his chest as he placed Abel's letter back in the book and focused solely on his. He knew that elegant, curling script. It was the same script that had lovingly filled Abel's book, the handwriting of Elizabeth Grey.  
He hesitated for a moment, his finger lingering at the corner of the letter, before shaking off his nerves (he had faced down guns before, so why the hell was he so afraid of a damn letter?) and ripped it open. He pulled out a single piece of paper, and carefully unfolded it. He took one more, quick breath, before letting his eyes scan over the page.

 _Dear Jax,  
_ _My name is Elizabeth Grey, but you can call me Eli.  
When I was a little girl, I lost my family. I was placed in foster care, and unfortunately, I was one of those rare cases that get put in less than ideal conditions. I spent my first ten years of life being placed in and out of foster families and county homes until a family adopted me. The parents of this family, Dawn and Glenn Grey, already had a little boy four years my senior that was their biological son but they had been told that Dawn couldn't bear any other children, her body simply wasn't strong enough. So, they'd come looking to adopt. And Lady Luck seemed to shine down on me that day because I got to go home with them. But, our little family got bigger later on. Dawn, my mother, had one last child: my younger brother Max Grey. And it was here, in Haven, that I grew up.  
Alexander, their son, became Haven's beloved Chief of Police.  
Max now owns a successful nightclub in Columbus.  
I graduated from Duke in North Carolina and came home after several unfortunate events, and I'm now the proud owner of my own tattoo parlor. I cater to any and all, but my best customer is SOANO.  
And yet, despite all of these amazing things that have happened to me and proved that I really must have some sort of luck streak going for me, I think the greatest and luckiest thing to ever happen to me was when I opened my front door to find a tiny, eighteen-month-old baby boy on my stoop. Abel. Abel is the greatest thing to ever happen to me. He has made everything I've had to go through to get here worth it. He is my angel, my sun, my moon, and my stars. He is the reason I've tried to become a better person, and I'd like to think that at least for him I've succeeded.  
I won't deny the pain I feel, writing this letter to you because that would be a lie. It will hurt, losing him. It will always hurt. I know this. And I know that, while the pain dosesn't go away, it'll lessen just a bit and maybe one day, if I'm lucky, I'll learn to live with it. And yet, despite this pain I feel, I don't regret this. I won't regret this.  
Because Abel means everything to me, and I can only imagine what he means to you. I can't imagine going through what you had to, Jax, and I'm so sorry that you had to. No one, no parent, should have to loose a child. So, do me a favor?  
Hold him close, Jax.  
Cherish him.  
Love him.  
And never let him go.  
~Elizabeth 'Eli' Grey  
Proud Mother_

* * *

 **Author's Note: Well then, this was angsty. Originally, this was NOT the chapter that I wrote. In fact, it's not close to the chapter I wrote at all. I just... sat down, started typing up the chapter I'd already wrote, and realized that it wasn't right. I mean, sure, it could have worked, but I wanted something... more. I hope I achieved it with this one. A huge thank you to everyone who reviewed, the update schedule is now up on my profile, and I'm hoping to update on Friday. And an early Happy Thanksgiving to all!  
Oh, here's a little challenge for you all: I hid a movie quote in here, can you find it?  
Questions? Comments? Review! I love 'em!  
~E.S  
(And yes, I did, in fact, leave things the way they are on purpose. What does Jax mean when he says he didn't expect things to be as hard as they were? Well, you'll just have to wait and see, won't you?)**


	4. CHAPTER THREE

**Summary: She was an angel, returning to him the son he had lost. He was a cowboy Casanova, riding off into the sunset with her heart in his hand. Fate and the luck of the Irish would bring them together, love would keep them there.**

 **Disclaimer: Twentieth Century Fox Cinemas owns the Sons, not me. I own this story and my OCs.**

 **WARNING: I curse, so does Eli. So do the Sons.**

* * *

 **CHAPTER THREE**

 **|Charming, CA|  
** **|JAX|**

When he woke up, the first thing Jax noticed was the pain in his neck. He grunted, slowly moving his head from side to side in an attempt to work out the kink. The second thing he noticed was Abel.

Abel's smile is wide when he sees his father, and the previously sleepy baby is wide awake near instantly. "Da!" He cheers and Jax smiles. The blond male stands, popping his back and groaning in relief, before heading over to the crib to lift Abel into his arms. "Hey there, buddy," Jax says and Abel smiles wider. He begins to babble away about something only he can understand, and the pauses mid-babble. He looks over Jax's shoulder at the rocking chair, then the baby monitor, and finally the door. "Who are you looking for, buddy?" Jax asks, even though he's got a feeling he knows who it is already. "Mama," Abel says quite frankly and if it hadn't been such a serious moment Jax would have snorted at the silent 'duh' that his son manages to imply even at two-years-old. "Mama," Abel calls. The little boy frowns when silence answers him, twisting in Jax's arms to look at the baby monitor. "Mama," he calls to it and Jax reasons this must be how he got Eli's attention early in the morning and late at night. "Mama," Abel calls again, looking towards the door expectantly, the look on his face becoming urgent when his mother doesn't appear. "Mama!"

He cries grow louder, and the sound tears away at Jax's heart. "Abel," he says after a moment. The little boy abruptly stops shouting for his mother and turns to look at his father, "Da?" Jax wants to smile, he really does, but he knows now is not the time. "Abel," Jax says, "Mama isn't here." Abel frowns at his father's words, "Mama come back?" Jax closes his eyes momentarily and swallows hard. When he opens his eyes again, there's a sadness in them as his eyes connect with his son's, "No Abel, Mama isn't coming back." Abel stares at him for a moment, before tears begin to fill his eyes.

"Mama!" Abel cries, tears streaming down his face. "Mama!"

He repeats the call, over and over again, the cry turning into a scream until he's worn himself out so much he ends up falling asleep with dried tears on his cheeks. Jax puts him back in the crib, flips the baby monitor on after grabbing its' twin, and walks out of the room. He sits outside on the porch steps, smoking a cigarette. His head is in his hands and he realizes he's got no idea what to do. Abel's spent two years with this woman, now Jax had ripped him away from her. And, not even two days in, Elizabeth Grey's absence seems to be having a major negative effect on Abel.

* * *

 **|Haven, OH|  
** **|ELI|**

"What the fu-"

"...didn't do anyth-"

"...why...called you!"

"...left her... this-"

"Beth?"

Eli groaned, cracking one eye open to peer around the room, her vision blurry. She groaned again when the world swam before her eyes, and shut her eyes tightly.

"Beth?"

Eli groaned again, her head throbbing painfully as the person speaking spoke louder than need be (at least to her).

"Beth, are you okay?"

Slowly, Eli opened her eyes. They widened as they met with the familiar warm brown eyes of her younger brother. "Max," she croaked, her voice rasping painfully. He grinned, "Hey, big sis. You look like shit." Eli stared at him. She cleared her throat, resisting the urge to cringe, and carefully shook her head in an attempt to clear it, "Where-Where am I?" Max sighed. Eli's face grew pale as everything rushed back to her once more. She slumped back down, head bowed, long red hair covering her face.

"Oh no you don't," Max growled, seizing her by the shoulders. Eli lifted her head. Miserable blue met steely brown and Max scowled down at her. "You've been sitting and drinking and smoking in the same damn spot for nearly a week, Elizabeth Eris Grey. At least go take a shower," he snapped. Eli stared up at him for a moment before scowling back. "Fuck you," she snarled, anger rushing forth. She lugged herself upright, deftly avoiding the ashtray and empty liquor bottles that lingered around her, to stomp out of the room. The slamming of the bathroom door rang out.

Max turned to Alex, arms crossed over his chest and one eyebrow raised defiantly, "Happy now?"

* * *

Standing under the punishingly hot spray of the shower, Eli closed her eyes. As she stood there, the muck of cigarette smoke that had clung to her hair and skin washing down the drain, she thought. She hadn't been to the parlor in roughly a week now, she hoped that her employees had managed to at least semi-competently run the place while she was gone. Then, there was the matter of her personal life to handle. Alex had obviously thought he should involve Max, who possessed a temper that rivaled Eli's on a good day. Well, Max had accomplished something. He'd gotten her out of the... nursery. She cringed as if the thought itself brought her physical pain. Quickly, she moved her thoughts onto something else.

And, when her cringe made a headache that had been pounding dully in the back of her head (a symptom of the gargantuan hangover she was going to have to suffer through, certainly) flare to life suddenly, Eli was quick to put grocery shopping on her list. Nothing worked better to cure a hangover for Eli then the herbal miracle tonic her great-grandmother had created from scratch years ago. Unfortunately, the redhead didn't happen to have the ingredients on hand.

After brushing her teeth to get the harsh tang and aftertaste of alcohol out of her mouth, Eli left the bathroom behind for her bedroom.

She pulled a plain, oversized black shirt out of the closet and was pulling it over her wet head when she glimpsed white lettering on it. She paused, pulling the portion of the shirt she'd already pulled on off and turned it 'round to face her.

Her face was carefully blank as she read the five white letters on the shirt, SOANO. Wading the black fabric up, she carelessly tossed it to the back of the closet and pulled out a different shirt.

She didn't notice that Max, who had come to make sure she hadn't tried to drown herself in the shower, had witnessed the action.

* * *

 **|ALEX|**

From the moment his parents had taken him to that orphanage at five-years-old, Alex had known he would do anything and everything within his power to protect his sister. Over the years, of course, he came to understand that there were just some things that he couldn't protect Eli from, heartbreak being one of them.  
And, over those same years that had taught him, he was unable to truly protect Eli from everything, Alex had almost become, as cruel as it sounded, desensitized to some of the situations that had caused Eli emotional pain. This latest and most severe of them all being one of them.  
Of course, he understood that Eli would be hurt when Abel returned to California with his biological family. He had said it himself, losing Abel in any form would break her heart. But, he couldn't understand the sudden relapse Eli's behavior seemed to have taken.  
However, watching his younger sister hold onto their younger brother as Max's taller form embraced her like the raven-haired young man was her lifeline, Alex came to the startling conclusion that maybe Max understood Eli better than anyone, even herself.

Thinking back on it, in fact, Alex recalled faintly with a fond smile that Eli and Max had been the best of friends.  
Eli had been older, of course, but they had seemed to understand each other in such a way that Alex could, truthfully, only dream of.  
And, up until Eli had left for college, it wasn't unusual for Max to disappear with the redhead on one of their 'adventures', an 'adventure' that often ended up landing one or both of them either in the hospital or in a the local holding cell, normally the latter, for the night.

But, Alex also recalled that, while Max was probably the best friend Eli had ever had, there were times when he seemed to be her worst enemy as well. The two were so alike that their hair-trigger tempers often clashed and ended in hurt feelings and, on rare occasions, black eyes and split lips.  
So, watching Eli hug Max tightly, Alex felt a rush of something hot and bitter (jealousy, perhaps?) as well as another emotion he could positively identify as trepidation for what was sure to come.

There was no telling just what Max would do to protect Eli, what she would do to protect him, and how far Max would go to make Eli happy again.  
And that, that was a very troubling thought.

* * *

 **| ONE MONTH LATER|  
**

 **| Charming, CA|  
** **|JAX|**

One month after Abel's first day home, thirty-two days after Jax had retrieved his formerly missing son from Ohio and brought him back to Charming, Jax finds himself sitting in the waiting room of a pediatricians' office.  
His head is in his hands and he looks up, scrubbing a hand over his face, his eyes landing on Abel.

The two year-old is sleeping fitfully in a blue stroller that used to be Jax's, a long time ago. Abel's small form seems so much smaller to Jax now than it had when he'd first brought Abel back, and exhaustion shows clearly on his youthful face even as he sleeps. Jax wonders, not for the first time, if this is his fault. Is he really that bad of a father that he can't even care for his own son properly?

"Abel," a soft voice calls. Jax looks up, his eyes landing on a young nurse who smiles when she sees his exhausted from, he assumes that this isn't her first rodeo. He picks up Abel's carrier and stands, walking over to the nurse and following her back towards the patient rooms.  
Abel is understandably fussy about it all when he wakes up, and for a minute Jax is terrified that his son will go off on a tangent once more. He doesn't. Jax's concern grows.

The nurse does the normal things, taking Abel's weight and his heart/blood pressure, etc. By the time she's finished, Jax knows something is wrong. There's a furrow between her brows and a frown upon her face.

Jax's heart plummets.

The nurse leads them to an empty room, gives Jax a strained smile, and rushes back out. Jax is left with a sinking feeling in his gut.  
He settles in, fully expecting to have to wait for a good while, seedlings as how he's well acquainted with doctors and, unlike in Charming, he's just a dad here. No special service from people who feel indebted to the Sons, or the people that are intimidated by them. Hell, he hadn't even wore his cut. He's completed fine with that too, believe it or not, because here in the privacy of the patient room he actually has time to think.

The door opens, and in walks an older greying brunette in a doctor's coat. She smiles, "Hello Mr. Teller, my name is Dr. Carmichael, I'll be Abel's pediatrician, as well as his physician."  
She sits in the rolling stool that all doctor's offices seem to have in each patient room and they go over the normal things. Jax mentions Abel's kidnapping, as well as his accidental adoption. That's when she asks about the dark shadows that linger beneath the eyes of both father and son.

"I take it Abel's not taking the separation from his adopted mother well," Dr. Carmichael says, and though it may have been worded as a question Jax knows it's anything but.  
He sighs, rubbing his aching eyes. "No," he admits, "He's not."

Dr. Carmichael take another look over the chart the nurse had given her, listing the details of his minor examination. She nods, pulling a pen from her pocket, and looks at Jax. "He's lost weight, and while it wouldn't be that big of a deal given Abel's past medical history as well as the amount that he's lost in only a months time, this already appears to be a problem. Has he been refusing food?"  
Again, Jax nods. "I've tried to feed him different things, my mom and his nanny have done the same. Nothing works," he sighs angrily, his frustrations mounting.

Dr. Carmichael clicks her pen and writes something down before turning back to Jax, "Abel's suffering from separation anxiety. It's more severe than most cases, which I think we can attribute to the sudden change in homes." She wrote something else down on her paper, and turned back to him with a serious expression.

Then, she asks a question that would change everything, "Have you though about joint custody?"

* * *

 **|RED; Columbus, OH|  
** **|MAX|**

The tall, handsome young man paced the floor of his in-club office in agitation. He ignored the bright, flashing lights and throbbing strobes that could be seen out the back wall of his office, directly behind his desk, through the all-glass paneling that looked out into the club as a one-way window.

The music couldn't be heard through the thick, soundproof walls of his impeccably decorated haven, but Max still felt as if the jackhammer in his skull was banging away to some, soundless bass.

He flicked a strand of copper-colored hair out of his eyes with a twist of his head, irritation swirling in his eyes. He cast a glance to the high-end, expensive-as-fuck, designer leather couch a few feet away from his desk and his eyes softened.

Eli, dressed in a pair of his sweatpants and an oversized Duke sweatshirt was fast asleep, her face gaunt and shadowed even in unconscious.

Brow furrowed, Max turned away from his sister; his best friend.  
With lengthy strides, he strode over to his desk. He opened one of the bottom drawers and spun the dial on the hidden safe, opening it when it unmatched and pulling out a finely aged bottle of bourbon that he saved for days like this. He grabbed one of the crystal glasses while he was at it and sat the finely crafted cup down on the desk, pouring the liquid and watching as the amber-colored alcohol swirled and spun.

He replaced the bottle and locked the safe once more before crossing the room to his one-way window. He stared down at the packed club and pulsing lights, throwing back the bourbon like it were water.  
His eyes hardened, and with his mind set the young man turned on his heel and marched over to his desk. He placed the glass down and grabbed the phone, his eyes on a card that he pulled out of the pocket of his expensive vest suit, dialing in a number that he just knew he was going to become very familiar with.

"Yes, Hello, my name is Max Grey. I'd like to speak with Jax Teller... tell him it's about his son."

* * *

 **Author's Note: Firstly, I apologize for my absence. I assure you all, it was never my intention. I had to strip the two chapters I'd already wrote for this story after the former chapter, which I mentioned was the exact opposite of what I'd originally wrote for that chapter. Then, while I was struggling to piece together this chapter in a semi-competent manner, life got in the way.  
** **But, not to worry, I have returned!  
** **I'm not sure when my next update will be, hopefully soon, so until then keep your eyes on the horizon, lovelies!  
Questions? Comments? Review! I love 'em!  
~E.S.**


	5. CHAPTER FOUR

**Summary: She was an angel, returning to him the son he had lost. He was a cowboy Casanova, riding off into the sunset with her heart in his hand. Fate and the luck of the Irish would bring them together, love would keep them there.**

 **Disclaimer: Twentieth Century Fox Cinemas owns the Sons, not me. I own this story and my OCs.**

 **WARNING: I curse, so does Eli. So do the Sons.**

* * *

 **Guest Review Responses:**

 _Guest chapter 4 . Mar 16: Poor Eli and Abel hope they are reunited soon_  
\- Don't worry, they will be!

 _Spoiledbratzraci chapter 4 . Mar 17: I love this. No one ever did this before. Please please update soon_  
\- Aw, thank you! I'm glad you think it's original, I work very hard to make a stories unique in some element.

 _Guest chapter 4 . Mar 17: Love it! I think Jax should have joint custody with Eli so Abel can still be connected to his mother_  
\- Thank you, I think so too but this story in particular seems to write itself so who knows. ;)

 _Guest chapter 4 . Apr 24: Pls update sooooooooon I love this story_  
\- Here you go!

* * *

 **CHAPTER FOUR**

 **|Somewhere in Ohio|  
** **|ELI|**

The first thing she noticed when she awoke was not, for the first time in a month, the hollow ache in her chest, but the fact that she was moving. Correction, she was in a car that was moving.

Eli opened her eyes, lashes fluttering, and grimaced when the bright sunlight assaulted her corneas violently.  
She turned her head to the right, staring out the window at the woods that passed by as shapeless blurs of green and brown. Then, she turned to the left.  
She watched her brother dispassionately, staring him down as he muttered something quietly to the Bluetooth earpiece he wore. She assumed he was on the phone with someone or another, probably someone hoping to invest in RED.

But, when he caught sight of her now-conscious form, Max quickly ended his call and removed the earpiece.

"Morning, Sleeping Beauty," he said softly, his eyes tender and his voice lacking the normal ruthless teasing she had grown accustomed to. Eli turned her head to the side, staring back out the window.

Unlike Alex, who would have huffed angrily, Max simply watched her for a moment before turning back to the road.

They continued the ride in silence, the sound of classic rock filling the space between.

 **|Charming, CA|  
** **|JAX|**

"I talked to a guy named Max a couple of weeks ago," Jax muttered, his eyes on his mother.  
Gemma looked up from the invoice she was filling out, peering at him over the top of her reading glasses, "That the guy who called a few weeks ago?"  
Jax nodded, "Yeah." Gemma nodded back, turning her gaze back to the paper in hand. Jax stared at her for a moment, "He's Elizabeth Grey's brother."

Gemma paused. She put down the paper, removing her glasses and placing them on top of the pile she still had to go over and turned her full attention to Jax. She raised an eyebrow, "Abel's adopted mother?"  
Jax watched her carefully, his eyes narrowing ever so slightly. He had, honestly, been expecting his mother to call the redhead they'd only just met a bitch or baby-stealer, something of the sort, to his surprise she did no such thing as she waited for him to go on.  
He nodded after a moment, "Yeah. He's her younger brother, owns a nightclub in Columbus." He paused, watching for any adverse reactions from his mother. He got none.

"He called because of his sister -Elizabeth-, she's not doing too good," he paused again when a flash of sympathy crossed his mother's face quicker than she could suppress it.  
Keeping his mouth shut about it, Jax pressed on.  
"She's not eating, barely sleeping, drinking herself into a stupor and smoking like a chimney, though her brother pointed out that she'd quit right before Abel's adoption papers went through," he explained.  
"Sounds like you," Gemma said, grabbing her lighter and removing a cigarette from the carton. She balanced the cancer stick in between her lips and flicked the lighter, touching the open flame to the tip.  
Jax watched her, his eyes dark.

He didn't mention that, to some extent -a far more serious and self-destructive extent- she'd reacted the same way when Tommy had died.

"I know," he replied, pulling out his own cigarette and lighter.  
The mother and son remained that way for a moment quietly smoking, with their thoughts on other things. Jax shook his head finally, breaking the silence, "He wanted to know if she could see him, his sister. He asked if she could see Abel." Gemma watched him carefully, knowing that there was more to come.  
Jax shook his head, a bitter smile on his lips, "He thinks that if she sees that Abel's adjusted well, it'll help her heal."  
Gemma stared at him, "Abel isn't adjusting well, Jackson."  
He sighed and it was harsh. Jax glared, "You think I don't know that, Ma?"  
Gemma's eyes went to the dark circles under his eyes and she felt a flash of pity, "I know you know baby, I'm just saying that, if anything, seeing Abel as well as yourself in the condition the two of you are in is just going to make this girl worse."  
Jax sighed, the sound soft and frustrated, "I know, Ma. I know."  
Slowly, Gemma stood. She took one of Jax's hands in her own, "Baby, there are just some wounds that can't be healed, losing a child in any way can be one of them."

Jax watched her carefully, his mind going to a darker time. After his younger brother's death, Jax had watched his mother fall apart in the privacy of their own home, only to hold her head high as if Thomas' death wasn't killing her.  
Tommy's death had damn near killed his mother, Jax knew that. Now, he knew something else.

Gemma Teller had lost a son and gained a wound when Tommy died. A wound that would likely never fully heal. One that, when Jax thought about it, probably hadn't even begun to scab over.

 **|Somewhere in Ohio|  
** **|ELI|**

Max escorted her into a dingy, little gas station bathroom, one hand placed gently on her elbow while the other held a large black duffel bag by the handles.  
He led her over to the largest stall and proceeded to hand her the duffel bag. "I packed you some clothes," he told her when she stared at him blankly.  
Then, he left.

Slowly, Eli walked further into the handicapped stall and shut the door, bolting it behind her. She sat the duffel on the floor and crouched, unzipping it carefully as though she expected it to contain something deadly. She found instead at the top of the bag (it was really full and she wasn't quite certain how she'd missed that before) a soft black band shirt that read 'PAPA ROACH' and her favorite pair of low-rise black skinny jeans that were faded at the knees. She stared at the articles of clothing for a moment, before pulling them out of the bag and mechanically replacing her oversized sweatshirt and the pair of sweatpants she'd stolen from Max with them. She found her wedge-heeled ankle boots underneath the comfortable outfit and slipped those on too.  
Then, she zipped the bag back up, slung it over her shoulder, unlocked the stall door, and slipped out.

Eli approached the sinks and mirrors cautiously, washing her hands slowly and watching the water drain down the sink when she was done.  
She looked up, catching a view of herself in the mirror, and grimaced.  
She'd fallen apart, fallen from grace, and she didn't know what to do about it. She couldn't take Abel, though legally he was still her son (unless Jackson Teller had legally had the adoption reversed) because she flat out refused to cause any other person the kind of pain she was now intimate with. And Jackson Teller was Abel's biological father, the biological father that he had been stolen from. Eli wasn't heartless, despite some of the things she had done to suggest otherwise, and as much as it hurt her to say goodbye to the baby she had called her own, she was willing to learn to live with that pain so that Abel could be with his family. His real family.  
But, even as she thought this, an anger rose within her. She clenched her fist tightly, leaning heavily on the sink she stood in front of and glared at her own reflection. Then, with no thought as to the consequences, she pulled back her already balled fist and let it fly.

 **|Somewhere in Ohio|  
|MAX|**

Max looked up from the beef jerky he was observing suspiciously when the sound of breaking glass reached his ears.

He was a few feet from the woman's restroom and his head shot up when he remembered just who he'd left in there.  
He hurried over, taking a subtle look around to make sure that no one else had heard the commotion (no one had, but still) and pushed open the heavy metal door.  
Eli stood in front of a broken mirror, staring at the shattered fragments like they held the answers to the universe's most interesting question, her eyes blank and scarlet blood dripping from the cuts decorating the knuckles of her right hand.  
It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what had happened, but the reason why was still a mystery.

"What the hell, Beth?"  
She didn't turn when he spoke, obviously lost in whatever violent little fantasy that had caused the destruction of a perfectly good (maybe not perfectly clean) mirror.  
"Beth? Fuck," he muttered, stepping closer to his older sister and taking his fist. Experimentally, he pressed a thumb down on one of the cuts.  
Eli hissed angrily, her head snapping to the side so that she could glare at him properly with narrowed slits for eyes.  
He ignored the glare. Obviously, whatever daze she'd went into after breaking that mirror was gone now.  
"Come on," he ordered softly, taking Eli's elbow gently and steering her out of the bathroom. He swiped the bag off of the floor, and dropped two twenty dollar bills onto the counter as they passed, having swiped a small first aid kit as they went, and ushered the redheaded female back out and into the car.

Max tossed the first aid kit into Eli's lap and steered the car onto the highway, flooring it for a good few miles. Finally, when he was sure he wasn't about to encounter police officers set upon him by an angry gas station attendant, he pulled off into an empty rest stop.  
He shut the car off and turned to Eli, holding out his hand for the first aid kit. Slowly, she handed it over.  
Then, before she could pull away, he grabbed her hand firmly.  
Silence filled the air as Max popped open the kit and pulled out a bottle of pure alcohol and a roll of gauze after deciding that the cuts weren't deep enough to actually need stitches.  
Eli hissed when the alcohol was poured directly onto her cuts, Max just glared at her. "This is your own fault, you know," he scolded. Eli snorted, rolling her eyes bitterly, "You're starting to sound like Alex, Max." The formerly raven-haired young man (copper-haired now) scowled at her, taking a fair amount of offense at the comparison.  
Eli grimaced when he wrapped the gauze around her wounds a tad tighter than what was necessary.

She turned her gaze out the window, eyes closing as she leaned her head against the cool glass.  
"Yeah," she whispered softly, "This _is_ all my fault."

 **|Charming, CA|  
** **|JAX|**

Jax walked out to his truck with Abel's car seat in hand and Gemma following close behind with Abel in her arms.

"Jax," Gemma called out to him as Jax went about strapping Abel's car seat into the backseat.  
He finished getting the seat in place and turned to his mother, "What, Ma?"  
His patience was running thin, and they both knew it.

Gemma handed Abel to his father and Jax cradled the blond baby against his shoulder, looking at his mother expectantly.  
She looked at him seriously, "You want my advice?"  
Jax resisted the urge to roll his eyes, "Not really, but you're going to give it to me anyway."  
She scowled, "Firstly, remove the stick from your ass, Jackson."  
He continued to wait expectantly, raising an eyebrow when Gemma didn't continue right away.  
Her eyes softened and she gazed at the baby looking around the lot quietly, then her brown eyes met his.  
"The boy needs his mother," Gemma said, "Take him to her, Jax."  
Then, turning on her heel, Gemma walked away. Jax watched her go before turning and buckling Abel into the car seat, taking a moment to watch his son.

* * *

The truck pulled into the main parking lot of Charming's largest and only park.

Jax got out, going around to the side of the truck to remove Abel's car seat from the fastenings.  
The baby was still awake, despite the dark circles that lingered underneath his baby blues.  
Lifting it by the handle, Jax walked over to one of the better-kept picnic tables slightly out of the way underneath a large oak tree but still within sight of the parking lot.

He sat down and waited.

* * *

It didn't take long for another car to pull into the parking space next to Jax's truck.

It was a cherry red 1970 Plymouth Hemi 'Cuda, and the driver was a copper-haired young man instead of the black-haired one Jax had expected. But, taking a closer look at his facial features as the other male stepped out of the car, Jax could see that it was the right guy just that his hair was colored differently (dyed, Jax assumed). The light-haired young man looked around, his eyes shielded behind dark sunglasses before turning back to the car and leaning in through his open window to talk to the shaded figure huddled up in the passenger seat.

Slowly, the passenger door opened and out stepped a redheaded figure.  
Jax stared in shock.  
Elizabeth Grey looked like she was dying.

Her red hair was lank, hanging limply around her shoulders, and framed her pale face which was now slightly gaunt and weary.  
Her eyes were red, dark circles clinging like crescent moons to the pale skin beneath them, and appeared horribly bloodshot.  
She was smaller too, he noted. Obviously, she'd lost weight. Her body seemed to have lost some of the vivacious curves that he had most certainly noticed upon their first meeting, and her shoulders drooped as if she carried the weight of the world on her shoulders.  
Even the way she walked sobbed sorrow, loss, defeat.

Suddenly, an image surfaced from his innermost subconscious to the forefront of his mind.  
Jax startled. His eyes widened when, mentally, he compared the downtrodden and grief-stricken form of Elizabeth Grey to his mother, directly after Thomas had died, and found that there were more comparisons between the two then there were differences.  
Guilt, the kind that was almost painful in its intensity, slammed down upon him like a tidal wave.  
He, Jax knew, had done this to her.  
He had pushed her beyond the breaking point by removing Abel from her care.  
And yet, still, a portion of him -the part that loved Abel with every fiber of his being- refused to be sorry for getting HIS son back.  
But, his mother's words echoed in his head.  
 _"The boy needs his mother," Gemma said, "Take him to her, Jax."_  
Abel wasn't just HIS son anymore, he was HERS too. Maybe not in blood, but blood wasn't everything, and that sentiment applied especially when it came to family.  
He knew then, there was only one way to fix this.

 **|ELI|**  
Even with her expensive sunglasses (a gift from her mother) on, Eli squinted when the bright sunlight hit her abused corneas.  
She was standing in a parking lot, a park's parking lot if she wasn't mistaken, and had no idea why.

Max had refused to tell her where they were going, which wasn't to say that Eli had even been asking. Really, she'd spent most of the ride drifting in and out of consciousness, in and out of a waking nightmare and a sleeping dream.  
She was just so _exhausted_. Mentally, emotionally, even physically (at this her tightly wrapped hand throbbed, as if in agreement) she had been worn down to her very breaking point.  
She just wanted to go home. Except, she would never be home. Not really, at least.  
Home was, after all, where the heart was. And Eli's heart had been stolen by Abel the moment she had found the baby boy on her front step.  
She just wanted to _go_.

"Max," her voice came out raspy even to her own ears, "What are we doing here?"  
She sagged against the side of the car, drained emotionally as well as physically, watching her younger brother as he moved from the driver's side door of the car to stand in front of it.  
"Take a look," Max said, lips twitching upward in a well-meaning smirk and gesturing with one hand to an occupied picnic table a few feet away.  
Slowly, tiredly, Eli turned.  
Her eyes met stormy blue first and widened when she took in the familiar face of the man who had walked from her home with her heart in his arms. He stood, this Jackson Teller man, and Eli's eyes darted down to the bundle he cradled in his arms.  
Those bloodshot orbs widened further and tears began to fill them once more as her breath left her in a rush and formed one nearly inaudible word:  
"Abel."

* * *

 **Author's Note: So, I have no excuse for this super late update other than RL. I've had to deal with some tremendous stuff lately, from raising my grades before the end of the year to a bad break up that ended in heartache and much more; but I never stopped writing this and working to get it out to you all, it just wasn't coming as easy with my own emotions in a mess. However, Chapter Four is here now and I'll hopefully have Five out to you all very soon.  
I hope you enjoyed, and a HUGE thank you to the love and support that this story has garnered, you are all amazing!  
Questions? Comments? Review! I love 'em!  
~E.S.**


	6. CHAPTER FIVE

**Summary: She was an angel, returning to him the son he had lost. He was a cowboy Casanova, riding off into the sunset with her heart in his hand.**  
 **Fate and the luck of the Irish would bring them together, love would keep them there.**

 **Disclaimer: Kurt Sutter is the creator of SOA, not me. I just have fun playing in his proverbial sandbox.**

* * *

 **CHAPTER FIVE**

* * *

 _ **"There has never been, nor will there ever be, anything quite so special as the love between a mother and son."  
-Author Unknown**_

* * *

 **|Charming, CA|**  
 **|MAX|**

 _There is something to be said_ , thought the youngest Grey sibling to himself, _about the love shared between a mother and her son_.

He watched as his big sister, his best friend, was seemingly returned to him from death's doorstep the moment her teary-eyed gaze landed on the tiny blond baby held securely in the arms of a biker.  
Abel, in return, looked towards his mother the moment she stepped out of the car as if some psychic connection between the two informed him of her arrival. Baby blues widened, and the child reached out towards Eli with chubby fingers and a wide smile.

"MAMA!"  
The cry is all Eli needed to move, and she did. She stumbled up the incline from parking lot pavement to park grass, nearly tripped over thin air or her own feet and pinwheeled her arms out in an effort to keep her balance. When stability had returned to her, she resumed her hurried scramble over the park grass to get to the small, blond baby waving a chubby fist in her direction frantically.  
The closer she got to Abel, the louder the baby chanted.  
"Mama, mama, mama, mama," it was just that, a chant, by the time Eli had _finally_ reached him.

The redhead embraced him then, her baby boy, her _son_ , and for one precious moment, everything was incredibly and gloriously right with the world.  
Then, reality came crashing back down.

* * *

 **|ELI|**

"Has he not been eating?"  
The words were spoken softly, inquisitively; there was no judgment to be found in them.

"No, not really."  
These words, spoken in turn and in reply, were gruff, though there was no anger or irritation held within them. The owner of them was simply unhappy with their truth.

Eli looked up, her green eyes drifting from Abel's sweet face to the face of his father, the face of Jackson Teller.  
She noticed then, everything that she had overlooked in the rush and wonder of seeing her son again.

Jackson Teller was an attractive man, yes, but that was the last thing on Eli's mind as her eyes searched his and found everything she was looking for.  
His stress, his love, his fear; it was all held within his eyes, eyes that Eli knew well thanks to Abel.  
And, it was in that moment that it hit her, how new to being a father Jackson Teller really was.

Abel was young when he was kidnapped, just eight months old. Jackson had only gotten _eight months_ with his son, and nearly a month of that time had seen Abel in the hospital.  
He had hardly gotten to be a father.  
There was some lurking sense of guilt that slowly built within Eli at this revelation because she'd had _two years_ with Abel.  
She'd had more time with Abel then his biological father had.  
He'd hardly had any time to be Abel's father; she'd had two years to be his mother.

"Having trouble sleeping, little man?"  
Eli's attention was diverted from her thoughts to Max as he spoke in a soft, cooing baby-voice to his adopted nephew.  
Her eyes went from her brother, who looks at Abel with such adoration, to the baby in question.

Abel had a handful of dried banana snacks clenched in his chubby fists and had finally slowed from his formerly ravenous eating.  
His blond curls were tousled, swept by the wind and his mother, and a few strands poked upwards in miniature cowlicks.  
But, it's his eyes that she noticed.  
The stormy baby blues were dark and tired, shaded crescents hanging below them (below eyes that are carbon copies of his father's).  
He looked exhausted.

Right as she thought on that exhaustion, his half-lidded eyes slid closed. His chubby fist, waving enthusiastically in the air, slowed before lowering down to rest beside him in the carrier Eli had placed him, and his head nodded to the side.  
It took mere minutes. Then, Abel was out like a light.

* * *

The sun began to set, and with it brought a sinking feeling of dread to the three adults sitting at an old wooden picnic table in Charming's only park.

Max was afraid for his sister.  
Something horrible would happen if she went back to her former state of oppression. He knew that, with a terrifying certainty.

Eli began to slip once more into darkness because she knew her time was almost up.  
She was going to have to leave her son, yet again.

Jax dreaded the ride home, which would no doubt be filled with Abel's heartbreaking cries, and all the nights that would follow.  
He feared for his son's health and his own sanity.

* * *

 **|MAX|**

"What time do we need to be back?"

Max glanced up, gaze traveling from his nephew to his sister.  
Eli watched Abel's still-sleeping form, a gentle adoration in her eyes, but already he could see a veil beginning to fall over her.  
He stared for a moment, unsure how to reply.  
He didn't need to be back for a while, his club could survive without him for a few days; Eli, on the other hand, couldn't afford to take more time off, regardless of whether or not she was the owner of the parlor."I don't need to head back for a while," Max said hesitantly, eyes downcast so that he didn't have to witness his sister's expression, "But you can't take any more time off, Eli. You haven't been to work in weeks, and it's _your_ parlor."  
Cautiously, he looked back up and immediately regretted it.

Eli's grief did strange things to her, Max had come to realize.  
When it happened -and he's only seen her grieve like that twice before-, it hit like a freight train. Suddenly, fast, with little to no warning beforehand.  
Unlike said freight train, however, it didn't tend to keep moving. It stopped, lingered, stuck around for a while.  
And, like a leach, it latched on; seemingly draining the very life from her body.  
It lingered, like a dark cloud, a twisted veil.  
There was very little anyone can do to lift it.

And, at the moment, that grief reappeared.  
It manifested in the slight slump of her shoulders (which would gradually worsen, he knew, if given ample amounts of time and grief) like she was Atlas charged with the weight of the very world on her shoulders; in the strained nature of her smile, in which no dimples could be seen; in the darkening of her eyes, changed from an evershifting-green to a green so dark that they were nearly black, the color of her pain; in the way a hand briefly pressed on her chest, as if to try and ward off some wordless ache, as if to keep together a splintering heart; and it manifested in the look on her face she couldn't quite keep hidden, the look that said she was breaking inside.  
A lump formed in Max's throat, and he wondered at her pain, at how much she must have felt. He felt as if he was losing his sister, to her grief; she felt as if she was losing her son, because of her own morals.  
Another look at her face, when it shifted to _that_ expression she couldn't quite hide, told him he didn't want to know.

* * *

 **|JAX|**

Jax watched, his chest tight with some unnamed emotion, as Elizabeth spoke to her brother.  
His anxiety only built when, with a wave of his hand, Max gestured towards him.  
Elizabeth's head turned, red hair swaying limply as she moved, and promptly froze upon making eyes contact with him.  
Jax held his breath as her eyes drifted from his to Abel's.

Even with the nice amount of space that existed between them, Jax was able to see her eyes fill with tears and her lips form a word; a name.  
"Abel."  
And then, Abel noticed her.

Jax felt the stiffening of his son's body, and he could practically feel the sudden burst and rush of energy Abel got from knowing that she was there.  
"MAMA!"  
He wasn't ashamed to admit that he jumped when Abel cried out and the sound pierced the air which had grown supernaturally still.  
It seemed to startle Elizabeth too because one minute she was looking at Abel like he was her world and the next she was scrambling toward them.

She stumbled up the minor incline between the parking lot gravel and the park grass, an incline Jax himself had tripped over a time or two, before reaching his side in a flash. She embraced Abel, Jax's existence momentarily going unnoticed.

He pretended not to notice when her shoulders shook as she cried, tear of joy replacing tears of sorrow as she was reunited with Abel.  
Then, her body stiffened and she pulled away reluctantly; obviously, she knew better than to completely lose herself in joy with grief lurked just around the corner.

Then, her eyes met his; Jax gave her a small, awkward smile and she returned it with one of her own.  
Rather helplessly, he gestured towards the table he had abandoned upon their arrival and she followed behind him as he returned to sit down first, and surprise flickered across her face when, after she had settled, Jax gently placed an excited baby into her arms. Then, he crossed the table until he was diagonal to her and sat down himself.

The first hour and a half of their meeting were spent with Abel occupying the attention spans of his adopted mother and uncle.  
He would pat Elizabeth's cheek gently, softly calling her name to get her attention if ever it strayed, and once he had it he would babble at her wildly in his own little language.  
She would smile, and Jax would see a light in her eyes that he hadn't before gotten to see in person. She devoted all of her attention to the child when he called for it, talking back to him and nodding as if she understood him.  
 _Maybe_ , Jax thought, _some sense he had yet to discover allowed her_ to.  
Max too found himself pulled into multiple one-sided conversations with his nephew, who would promptly butcher his name ("'Ax, 'Ax!") in order to get his adopted uncles attention before going off on a tangent that none of them actually understood though.  
Abel, Jax found, also liked to wave his arms around wildly when he talked; a fact that amused him to no end.

Eventually, the baby got tired of talking.  
He patted Elizabeth's cheek to get her attention and, once she had turned to him, whimpered, "Mama, 'ungry."  
Jax didn't have a chance to move before Elizabeth already had.  
She deftly knelt down, casually balancing a complacent Abel in her arms, and dug through the very baby bag she had once used for him until her fingers came in contact with the cool plastic of a bag. She pulled out the Gerbers crackers and opened them one-handed before grabbing a couple and gently placing them in Abel's chubby hand, her eyes widened when Abel quickly began to shovel the snack into his mouth.

"Has he not been eating?"  
Elizabeth turned to him questioningly, her eyes free of judgment, and Jax grimaced.  
"No," he admitted gruffly, "Not really."  
Lifting a hand wearily, he rubbed at his tired eyes with a sigh; he never noticed the understanding look Elizabeth directed his way.

Time passed and eventually, the sun began to set. A feeling of dread settled in his stomach, and Jax looked away, he dreaded the ride home.  
Abel fell asleep, a handful of crackers still clutched in his chubby fist, and without his eager chatter and suddenly happy disposition the reality of their situation hit all of the adults hard.  
It was Elizabeth who broached the issue.

"What time do we need to be back by?"  
Jax turned his gaze from Abel to Elizabeth, watching as a dark cloud seemed to descend upon her.  
Her eyes dulled and drifted down to gaze at the picnic table as her brother replied, "I don't need to head back for a while. But you can't take any more time off, Eli. You haven't been to work in weeks, and it's _your_ parlor."  
Jax's curiosity was piqued momentarily before he processed what the younger male had said. Weeks? How bad has Elizabeth's condition been then, truly?

Jax watched as Elizabeth's condition, formerly returning to vibrancy with Abel within eyeshot, began to deteriorate once more.  
She couldn't handle the grief, he realized. She couldn't handle losing _her_ son again.  
He hesitated, momentarily, wondering if what he was about to say was the right thing to do. Then, he remembered the old grief in his mother's eyes when she had told him that Abel needed his mother. He remembered Abel, all the sleepless nights and the tears; he remembered that phone call with Max, and the fear and pain in the younger's voice as he explained exactly why he thought his sister needed to see Abel one last time, to truly say her goodbyes. And he remembered what he had thought then, the words he hadn't said, "What if she didn't have to?"  
Then, once his hesitation faded and he had finished reminiscing, he spoke.

"What if you could? Stay longer, that is."

He waited until Elizabeth met his eyes, momentarily ignoring Max who was looking at him with no small amount of trepidation, "What if you didn't have to say goodbye?"  
And at that moment, he saw something in Elizabeth's eyes come to life.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Words cannot express how incredibly apologetic I am for being away for so long. I can only say that I didn't plan to be and that I hope I won't be from this point forward, though I make no promises. RL has a way of sneaking up on you, as I'm sure many of you already know.  
** **On another note, words can also not express how absolutely amazing and thankful I am for the love shown to this story. Thank you all, so incredibly much. I love Cowboys and Angels, this is my true brainchild, and I certainly want to do right by it and by all the people who share my love for it.  
** **So, yes, I'm back. Or at least I plan to be. And so are the emotional times, though hopefully, fluff will be on the horizon soon. I _can_ say, however, that from this point forward things are about to get very interesting.  
** **Ciao, lovelies.  
Questions? Comments? Review! I love 'em!  
-E.S.**


	7. CHAPTER SIX

**Summary: She was an angel, returning to him the son he had lost. He was a cowboy Casanova, riding off into the sunset with her heart in his hand.**  
 **Fate and the luck of the Irish would bring them together, love would keep them there.**

 **Disclaimer: Kurt Sutter is the creator of SOA, not me. I just have fun playing in his proverbial sandbox.**

* * *

 **CHAPTER SIX** **  
"As a father, you want the best for your son, quite obviously. You want to create the best memories for your son."  
-Bill Goldberg**

* * *

 **|CHARMING, CA|**  
 **|ELI|**  
"What if you could? Stay longer, that is?"  
Jackson Teller broke the uneasy silence that had fallen between the three adults, and Eli's eyes went from Abel's sleeping face to his.  
"What if you didn't have to say goodbye?"

Eli's heart jumped in her chest, seeming to skip a beat before resuming its rhythm twice as fast, and her breath caught in her throat.  
Was there a chance, a _real_ chance, that she could see Abel again? That she could continue to be his mother?  
She stared hard at Jackson Teller, hardly daring to believe him, hardly daring to hope.

"I took Abel to a pediatrician a few weeks ago and she told me about something," Jax began slowly, "called joint custody. If we had joint custody of Abel, we would both legally share parental rights. Due to the circumstances, of course, things might be different. But, if you're willing, I'd agree to share custody of Abel. I'm his father, but he sees _you_ as his mother."

Eli was in shock.  
Why would Jackson Teller want to share custody with her, a virtual stranger?

"Why?" It was Max who said what Eli was thinking, "Why would you, Abel's biological father, want to share custody with my sister when she is -for all intents and purposes- a stranger?"  
Jackson took a moment to pause and gather his thoughts before slowly replying, "Because every child should have a mother, and your sister is the only mother he knows. Because Abel loves her, and she loves him. Because I know that she would do anything to keep him safe. And he needs that."

Eli looked at Jackson Teller, _really_ looked at him.  
She looked past the rugged looks, past the leather cut. She looked at _him_. And saw a man who wanted his son to be safe and loved, and for some reason, he thought she could be that safety and that love.

"Beth," Eli's head turned and she locked eyes with Max, "You should do it."  
She frowned, "Max, I can't. You said it yourself, I have a job and a parlor to take care of. I can't just drop everything and move, not to mention that even if I did I wouldn't have anywhere to move to."  
"But you can," retorted Max, "You _can_ drop everything and move, Beth. It's your parlor, and you can set it up somewhere here in Charming. The employees will understand, most of them are just temps anyways. And we can figure something out housing-wise. A house shouldn't be too much, and you've still got your inheritance, right?"  
Eli sighed, "No, not really; most of my inheritance went into a bank account I opened for Abel's future college fund."  
"Well, we can still-"

Jackson broke in before the conversation could further transition into an argument, "You could stay with us."  
He waited until both siblings had turned their attention to him before continuing, "With Abel and I, I mean. I have plenty of room, and I'm sure Abel would definitely appreciate it. And then, when you find a place, we can work something else out."  
Eli gaped. To offer her a place in Abel's life _period_ was one thing. To offer her a place to stay for an undetermined amount of time when he didn't even know her? Either Jackson Teller truly loved his son, or he was far too trusting. Personally, she'd be betting on the former.

One swift look at Abel's peaceful face and Eli's mind was made up. She knew her answer, with a startling certainty.  
Max went to speak, probably to try and convince her to take Jackson's offer, but Eli was quicker.

"Yes. Yes, I'll stay."

* * *

 **|JAX|**

"What if you could? Stay longer, that is? What if you didn't have to say goodbye?"  
Jax watched as something in Elizabeth Grey came to life with his words, watched as a light entered her eyes; as hope entered them.  
And seeing that hope, gave him hope in return and before he knew it his unspoken ideas and secretly plotted plans were no longer unspoken and no longer secrets, "I took Abel to the pediatrician a few weeks ago and she told me about something called joint we had joint custody of Abel, we would both legally share parental rights. Due to the circumstances, of course, things might be different. But, if you're willing, I'd agree to share custody of Abel. I'm his father, but he sees _you_ as his mother."

All went quiet and after a moment Jax felt a swell of panic begin to form deep within him, had he said something wrong? If he had, and she left, what would happen to Abel?  
Then, the youngest of the three adults broke the silence.  
"Why?"

Jax's head turned and he locked gazes with the narrowed eyes of Max, who's tense posture and outright glare betrayed him in his suspicions.  
"Why would you," he continued, "Abel's biological father, want to share custody with my sister when she is -for all intents and purposes- a stranger?"

Jax only had to think for a few seconds, "Because every child should have a mother, and your sister is the only mother he knows. Because Abel loves her, and she loves him. Because I know that she would do anything to keep him safe. And he needs that."  
At some point during his explanation, Jax had caught Elizabeth's gaze and held it. Because of that, he saw the very moment she saw the one thing he wanted most for his son; safety and love.

"Beth," Max, yet again, broke the still air and Jax turned alongside Elizabeth to look at him.  
Max only had eyes for his sister, however, as he firmly told her, "You should do it."  
Elizabeth's brow furrowed, and Jax's attention shifted to her as she said, "Max, I can't. You said it yourself, I have a job and a parlor to take care of. I can't just drop everything and move, not to mention that even if I did I wouldn't have anywhere to move to."

Jax's mind began to race and he blocked out whatever Max chose to reply with.  
Elizabeth had a point, it was a tad unreasonable to ask her -a stranger, as Max had so easily pointed out- to drop everything, no matter how much she loved Abel. After all, hadn't Tara loved Abel? Hadn't she loved _him_? He thought she had, and yet she'd still left.  
But, Jax's fears of an unknown future, _Abel's_ future, kept him determined, even when some of his worst memories -memories of Tara- reared their ugly heads like dragons and demons.

He turned back to the ongoing discussion right as some sort of inheritance was mentioned.  
Max's frustration was palpable as he scowled down at the picnic table. Then, a metaphorical lightbulb seemed to go off above his head, as he turned to Elizabeth and said, "Well, we can still-"  
Jax interrupted before the conversation could go on further and evolve into an argument, "You could stay with us."  
Elizabeth turned to him, and Jax paused before continuing cautiously," With Abel and I, I mean. I have plenty of room, and I'm sure Abel would definitely appreciate it. And then, when you find a place, we can work something else out."

There was a tension in the air as Elizabeth deliberated and Jax could feel the many muscles and tendons in his body tense in anticipation.  
He didn't know what would happen next if she said no.  
He watched her face, watched the surprise flick across it and the deep thought wrinkle her brow, and saw the moment she made her mind up.  
She looked at Abel, and he saw a brief glimpse of what he thought might as well have been a mirror-image of his own face when he looked at his son.  
Out of the corner of his eye, Jax saw Max go to speak, only for Elizabeth to beat him to the punch.  
"Yes. Yes, I'll stay."

* * *

|MAX|

A wave of relief washed over him the moment Beth agreed to stay in Charming with Abel and Jax Teller.  
He hadn't been one-hundred-percent certain that Eli would agree, and for a moment he had seen his sister waste away in the blink of an eye.  
Now, however, a much brighter future could be envisioned. A bright future _without_ gravestones.

He turned to Beth with a smile, "I've got another bag for you in my car, it's clothes and things. There should be enough for a day or two, and then we can head back to the house in Ohio and pack things up. Get your affairs settled then, and all that."  
His big sister stared at him for a moment, emerald eyes narrowing, "Was this planned?"  
Max's eyes widened and he tried to project himself as the picture of innocence, which wasn't very easy when Eli had grown up with him and knew all his tells, "No."  
She stared at him for a moment before humming, the noise easily conveying that she didn't honestly believe him in the slightest, and turned away.

Max relaxed, watching her for a moment before he glanced up and caught the blue-steel gaze of Jax Teller.  
He didn't look very convinced either.

* * *

 **|ELI|**

Everything seemed to move faster than Eli could quite grasp as one minute she was sitting in a park discussing the near future, and the next she was sitting in the passenger seat of her brother's car heading towards the next chapter in her life.  
In the back, one of her biggest reason for breathing was sleeping peacefully.

She squinted out the car window at the darkened scenery as they drove through the town once more, lucid enough this time around to take in as much of the night-tinged town as she could.  
To her disappointment, twilight obscured most everything there was to see.

"Are you sure about this?"  
Max's voice startled her, despite his quite volume.  
She turned and looked at him with a raised eyebrow, "Aren't _you_ the one who told me I should stay?"  
He scowled, "Yeah, but I want to be sure that this is what _you_ want and you're not just doing what _I_ said you should do."

It occurred to Eli then exactly what her brother was doing. He was trying to protect her, as he always was.  
She smiled at him softly, waiting until he glanced in her direction to retort, "When have I ever listened to you?"  
She saw his form relax in the shadow of twilight and could hear the small upturn of his lips when he replied, "Touche, Beth. Touche."

A beat passed between them before Eli spoke up once again.  
"Really Max," she said, "I'm sure about this. If it lets me keep Abel in my life..."  
Max nodded in the darkness, "You'd do anything, I know. I'm just saying, you don't know him, Eli. You don't have to do this, we can find another way for you to see Abel. Maybe get full custody of him, if we have to."  
Eli shot him a look full of surprise and disappointment, though she knew he couldn't see it she hoped he could feel it, "You sound like Alex, Maximilian. And you're right, I don't know Jackson Teller. But I know Abel. And I have to have some hope that whatever good belongs to Abel, belongs to his father too. Because I **refuse** to be the reason he loses his son. Permanently or not. I won't have it, Max."

There was true remorse in her brother's voice when he replied, "You're right, Beth. I shouldn't have said that. I shouldn't have even suggested it. I'm sorry."  
Eli sighed, "I know."

A silence fell between them, before Eli broke it, "You know, I meant what I said, Max. I'm _not_ doing this because you told me I should. I'm doing it because I want to. Abel deserves the world, and I would give it to him if I could."  
Max nodded, " _I_ know."

* * *

They stood outside a moderately-sized house a little while later, leaning carefully against Max's car.  
Jackson Teller had pulled in a few minutes before them and then disappeared into his house. The Grey siblings were waiting for his inevitable return, Abel sleeping peacefully in his car seat just behind them.

Eli looked forward at the house that she would be staying in for an unknown amount of time, the house that Abel had called home for the few short months he'd had with his father. Somehow, she knew that her future existed in that house.

Max startled her yet again when he spoke out of the dark suddenly, "Are you sure about this?"  
Eli turned to him with a glare, her eyes glinting sharply in the yellow-orange lamplight; she was not having this conversation again.  
Max's own eyes widened and he held up both hands in the universal sign of surrender, "Just double checking!"

Both of them turned to the house when the door opened and out stepped Jackson Teller.  
He made his way across his lawn to them, and the three stood there in the quiet of the night for a few moments.  
Then, Jackson spoke.  
His eyes were on Eli asked he asked, "Ready to come in?"  
For some reason, it felt like that question was much bigger than a simple invitation made up of four little words.  
Eli smiled, "Yeah. Yeah, I am."

She gathered Abel in her arms, Jax grabbed her bag.  
And Eli stepped over the threshold of this new house, into her new life.

* * *

 **Author's Note:  
Wow, guys. Just... wow.  
I have never smiled more than I have the past couple of days with all the story alerts blowing up my email.  
Reading all of your reviews makes my day, and knowing that so many of you are just as invested in Cowboys & Angels as I am... there's truly nothing like it.  
I am so incredibly grateful to all of you; thank you so very much.  
On the subject of this chapter - I feel like the ending was a bit rushed, but there's only so many times I can rewrite it before deciding to leave well enough alone. But, overall I'm relatively pleased with how everything turned out.  
Jax took the plunge -or one of them at least- and offered Eli his home, and she accepted.  
Fluff should be expected at some point, but beware! The story's only just beginning, and in the world of SAMCRO nothing is ever simple and nothing is ever simple.  
And with that, I bid you all adieu!  
Questions? Comments? Review! I love 'em!  
-E.S.**


	8. CHAPTER SEVEN

**Summary: She was an angel, returning to him the son he had lost. He was a cowboy Casanova, riding off into the sunset with her heart in his hand.**  
 **Fate and the luck of the Irish would bring them together, love would keep them there.**

 **Disclaimer: Kurt Sutter is the creator of SOA, not me. I just have fun playing in his proverbial sandbox.**

* * *

 **CHAPTER SEVEN**

* * *

 **|Charming,** CA|  
|JAX|  
 _Hand on his gun, Jax carefully pushed open the ajar front door as a vague sense of unease filled him.  
_ _Something was wrong._  
 _Something was terribly, terribly wrong._

 _"Tara? Tara, I'm home. Why aren't you at the clubhouse?"_  
 _There was no answer, and Jax's unease grew._  
 _He rounded the corner, and his eyes grew wide as he took in the sight of Half-Sack dead or dying on his kitchen floor in a puddle of his own blood._

 _His head snapped to the left as his blood went cold, "Abel."_  
 _Jax darted up the stairs, slamming into the nursery door and shoving it open with the force of an enraged bull. It flew back and slammed against the wall, and Jax stumbled in._

 _His eyes landed first on the rocking chair in the corner of the room, and he expected to see Tara there; hadn't she been there before?_  
 _Only, this time around, it was empty and bare._  
 _Then, his gaze went to the crib pressed against the far wall._  
 _He scrambled towards it._

 _Peering inside, Jax's stomach dropped and he felt sick._  
 _The crib was empty._  
 _Abel... Abel was gone._  
 _In his place, abandoned carelessly, was a baby-blue SOA beanie._

 _For some unexplainable reason, he felt compelled to look down. So he did._  
 _And cried out in horror at what he found, "No! No, no, no!"_  
 _His hands were covered in blood._  
 _Somehow, he knew it belonged to all the people he had ever hurt, including his son.  
After all, it was his fault Abel was gone.  
It was **all his fault**. _

* * *

Jax woke up gasping for air.  
He sat upright in his too-empty bed, sweat covering his shaking form, feeling like he was going to be sick.  
Then, he remembered what he had been dreaming of.

Before he could stop himself, not that he likely would have, Jax was bolting from his bed and making his way to the nursery.  
He found the door ajar, and a wave of fear washed over him.  
He was terrified, so very terrified, that his nightmares were about to become reality all over again.  
With a trembling hand, he pushed open the door and looked inside.

Just as in his dream, Jax was drawn first to the rocking chair in the corner.  
Unlike his dream, however, it wasn't empty.

His new housemate, Miss Elizabeth Grey, was fast asleep in the chair, her hair messy from sleep and her face gaunt from her previous weeks of grief, but a small smile highlighted her face beautifully.  
Held securely in her arms, sleeping just as peacefully, was Abel.

He stood there for a moment, feeling a tad foolish but overwhelmingly relieved, his heartbeat beginning to slowly return to its normal pace.  
Jax's eyes went to the crib then and he swallowed hard, he didn't want to look but he knew he needed to, just to confirm what he already knew, that Abel was just fine and safe in the arms of Elizabeth Grey.  
Quietly, he crept over to the crib and peered into it. It was empty, and his tense form finally relaxed fully.

Abel was safe.  
Elizabeth Grey had him in her arms, and nothing could get to the baby.  
He wasn't dreaming, not this time.  
This time, Abel's safe return was real.

Jax returned to the nursery doorway and sagged against it.  
His eyes, tired and worn and stressed, locked onto the sleeping forms of Elizabeth and Abel.  
And he lost himself to thought.

* * *

"Jackson?"

It was Elizabeth's voice that broke the trance-like state that Jax had fallen into.  
He looked up from the floor, his gaze having drifted there at some unknown point throughout the night, and blinked.  
Blue met green, and he smiled sheepishly at the small furrow of Elizabeth's brow as she looked at him in sleepy confusion.

"Are you okay?"  
Her voice was raspy from sleep, the whisper sounding loud in the formerly still and silent room, and she shifted in the rocking chair, carefully cradling Abel in her arms.

Jax nodded slowly, "Yeah. Just, uh, nightmares. That's all."  
She continued to look at him, her eyes dissecting him and his every thought and emotion, before nodding just as slowly.  
Her gaze went to Abel's peacefully sleeping face as she said, "I get them too."  
There was no doubt in Jax's mind as to what her nightmares were about, and a wave of guilt rushed over him.

"I'm sorry."  
His apology lingered in the air, suspended between them by his guilt and her disbelief.  
"...What?"  
Jax cleared his throat, shifting on his feet uneasily, and his eyes darted to the floor before darting back up to her, "I'm sorry."

He wasn't expecting her to stand as quickly as she did, and he wasn't expecting her to walk over to the crib and gently place Abel in it before crossing the room to stand in front of him.  
Her arms were crossed over her chest, and there was a fire in her eyes, "Don't ever say that, don't you **dare** ever apologize for wanting the best for your son. I wouldn't."  
Stunned, Jax didn't have any response other than to stare at her stupidly.  
Elizabeth shifted on her feet, her eyes darting down to the carpeted floor, "Abel loves you, Jackson. He's proud of you, even if he can't express it yet. And he should be. Not every child gets a father like you."  
And with those parting words, she walked away, leaving Jax in the nursery with her words running around in his head.

* * *

 **|ELI|  
**

When she first woke up, Eli had absolutely no idea where she was.  
The guest room was the opposite of her dark ("Depressing," claimed Alex) modern bedroom, as it was made up of light colors and soft white woods.  
Even the vibe was different, she couldn't hear a fan running in the background or children shrieking outside the window.  
There was nothing but silence.  
For a moment, she thought she was dreaming.  
And then, the noise that had woken her up, to begin with, sounded again.  
She was up and out of the bed before she really knew what she was doing, Abel's cries compelling her.

Eli made her way to his nursery, stumbling in the dark and found herself vaguely lost. It was sheer luck that allowed her to find the nursery - and her crying baby - as easily as she did.  
She quietly pushed open the nursery door (white-painted wood) and stepped inside, leaving it ajar. Making her way to the crib, Eli couldn't help but admire the nursery. It was quite similar to the nursery she (and her brothers) had put together for Abel in Haven, ironically enough. The only differences being that the walls were a pale blue instead of a mint green, the floors were indigo shag instead of mahogany wood, and there was a massive shelf containing everything the baby could want and/or need against a wall.  
Her attention was drawn from the nursery's design to Abel when he whimpered again, and she looked down into the crib to find the blond-haired baby making the universally recognized "grabby-hands" at her. She gave him a soft, caring smile and carefully reached into the crib and lifted him out and into her arms. Instantly, the baby curled into her, one chubby little hand going to grip the excess fabric of her sleep shirt.

Humming to him softly under her breath, Eli looked around the nursery for a place to sit. Her eyes landed on the rocking chair in the corner closest to the crib and she smiled, yet again the similarities between the nursery Abel had in Haven and the nursery he had here in Charming were making themselves known. Carefully, Eli padded quietly over to the chair and, once reaching it, sank down into it.  
She shifted Abel so that he was lying partially on her chest, his head resting on her shoulder, with her arms wrapped protectively around him. She fixed the blanket she had pulled from the crib with him so that it was covering his little body and settled in for a long night.  
Gently rocking them back and forth, Eli unwillingly found herself drifting off and was fast asleep before she even knew what was happening.

* * *

Eli was asleep one minute and awake the next, her neck giving an uncomfortable twinge as she lifted her head for the first time in what was most certainly a few hours.  
Her eyes went first to Abel's sleeping form, still resting peacefully in her arms, and only went to the rest of the room once she was certain that her baby was safe.  
She only had to look to the doorway to figure out exactly what she had unconsciously sensed, the distracted form of her new housemate, Jackson.

Eyebrows furrowed in confusion, Eli looked at him with blurry eyes. She rubbed absently at her eyes and cleared her throat, "Jackson?"  
The blond biker blinked rapidly, seemingly coming out of a trance, and his gunmetal-blue eyes darted up to her. He smiled sheepishly at her, and Eli's concern grew as she took in the shadows beneath his ever-so-slightly bloodshot eyes.

"Are you okay?" Eli questioned, wincing at the grating of her dry throat and the way her voice rasped out. The whisper itself sounded loud in the quiet room, and Eli shifted in the chair.  
Jackson nodded slowly, "Yeah. Just, uh, nightmares. That's all."  
Slowly, Eli nodded. Her eyes went to Abel's peaceful little face, "I get them too."  
She grimaced at the fresh memories of a time when the familiar, comforting weight of Abel had been ripped from her, and all the nightmares she had suffered from since then.  
Eli looked up just in time to catch a glimpse of emotion flashing across Jackson's face. She knew what was coming before it had even happened.

"I'm sorry."  
The apology lingered, and Eli didn't quite know how to respond. She'd seen it coming, yes, but that hadn't prepared her it.  
"...What?"  
Jackson shifted nervously on his feet and cleared his throat before repeating himself, "I'm sorry."

Swiftly, Eli stood from the rocking chair, carefully cradling Abel in her arms.  
She moved to the crib wordlessly and placed the baby gently back into his bed, smoothing a soft hand through the blond curls before straightening back up and turning to Jackson.  
A righteous fire burned in her and she moved to stand in front of her new housemate, crossing her arms over her chest and leveling him with a look.

"Don't you ever say that," she breathed, her voice quiet so as not to wake Abel but severe all the same, "Don't ever say that, don't you **dare** ever apologize for wanting the best for your son. I wouldn't."  
And that was the truth. Over the time Eli had spent raising Abel, she had done many things for the little boy. Things that, if it weren't for her child, wouldn't have been done otherwise. She had sacrificed much, in that course of time. And she would do it all over again. For Abel.

Jackson's eyes widened and he gawped at her, making Eli shift uncomfortably. Nervous that she had crossed some invisible line, but not entirely willing to back down, she pressed on, "Abel loves you, Jackson. He's proud of you, even if he can't express it yet. And he should be. Not every child gets a father like you."  
Eli grimaced and her mind drifting back momentarily to a not-so-distant past. Then, knowing there was nothing else she could say -or wanted to, for that matter- the redhead gave Jackson a weak smile and walked away.

* * *

Finding her room wasn't as hard as Eli had feared it would be, and she was quick to settle back into the guest bed's sheets.

She lay there in the dark, her mind a million miles away from the little two-story she now inhabited.  
Eli rolled over, green eyes landing on the still and silent cell resting on the bedside table.

After an internal battle, one thought won out and Eli found herself standing from the bed once more.  
She grabbed the phone from the table and crossed over to the room's large window.  
She speed-dialed a number and stared out at the darkened street as it rang.  
There was a crackle as the phone on the other end of the line was answered, and Eli's eyes shut as a familiar voice drifted through.  
" _Hello?_ "

Eli breathed in deeply, some of the pressure that had formed in her chest vanishing.  
"Hey, Mom."

* * *

 **Author's Note: Hey, guys! I'm sorry this chapter is so late -yeah, I know it's _really_ late- things have gotten a tad stressful on my end as of late. My mother had two surgeries with only a week between them, and last week was the last week of the school year (finals, folks, finals...)  
But, that's all said and done now and we're officially one week into the summer, so enough about that!  
Story-wise; this chapter is really more of a stepping stone in the grand scheme of things, though I do feel like the moments seen here were important. We get to see that Jax is still pretty messed up about Abel's kidnapping (who wouldn't be?) and definitely has some issues with being confident that he'll be able to protect his son, as well as guilt for all that both Abel AND Eli have went through. As for Eli, she's obviously got her own set of problems to deal with, though she tried to put Jax a little bit at ease. And finally, we got to hear a little bit about Eli's backstory, and she called her mom. Will that lead to anything? Maybe. Maybe not. I've honestly not decided yet.  
I hope to hear from you lot about how this one looks, and I'll see you all soon.  
Questions? Comments? Review! I love 'em!  
-E.S. **


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